


Magix Club, the Next Generation: Before It All Starts

by RavenBloom



Series: Magix Club [1]
Category: Winx Club
Genre: Everything else is not-canon, F/M, Gen, Layla is called Aisha because I grew up with Nick, Magix Club, Nabu is alive, Next generation fic, Not your usual next gen story, Post-Season 4, Pre-Alfea story, dragon powers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-28
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2020-07-23 15:22:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 103,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20010496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RavenBloom/pseuds/RavenBloom
Summary: Years have passed since the generation of the Winx Club. The realm of Magix is at peace, and the daughters of the Winx are just about ready to enter Alfea — ready, but not quite. Even so, trouble now starts to brew. Can the second generation of the Winx — the Magix, defeat an enemy before even becoming true fairies?





	1. Raven

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Winx Club is owned by Ignio Straffi and his company Rainbow S.r.l., including the games, comics and movies alongside the cartoon. This fanfiction only considers events from seasons 1 to 4 as canon, along the events of the first two movies, though for the purposes of the story, Bloomix and the other transformations exist. Nabu is alive having woken up from a coma post season 4, and Daphne is dead, the Sirenix Curse not existing in this story.

King Sky Eraklyon stood in front of a set of double doors, his fist raised as he pounded on the wood and metal that was intricately carved and embossed into the serpentine, curving form of a sleek dragon of bronze and brass. "Raven, open the door!" he shouted, trying to get through to the girl on the other end of the heavy doors. His voice, though loud, was also laden heavily with melancholy. "Raven, please! Your mother hasn't seen you in an entire week, and Bloom's really getting worried about you. Please, just open the door and show up for dinner, Raven, just once."

There was a beat of silence, and the door was pushed open just a sliver, enough for the voice of a fourteen-year-old girl to get to him, a slightly low and harsh voice and snarled words a daughter should never speak to her parents. "The queen is _not_ my mother. _You_ are not my _father_. My parents are _dead,_ Your Majesty," the address was full of venom and positively overflowing with it, "so please stop pestering me about this." The girl moved to close the door again, pulling it halfway shut before Sky's senses kicked into gear, and the former Specialist lashed out to grab the door.

"Oh no you don't!" the blond burst out, using his strength to overpower the slender girl and force open one of the double doors entirely. He stared down at the teenage girl that stood right behind the doors that opened outward, his blue eyes narrowed in irritation and anger at the rebellious and unruly teen. He didn't know how she could possibly deny the relationship — her blue eyes were the exact same as his and Bloom's and her strawberry blonde hair was the exact shade one would get by combining their hair colours. Even now, he could see the facial features of his wife in the girl.

An ugly scowl twisted the girl's face and she lowered her head slightly, letting her chin-length hair fall over the right side of her face and cast half of her face into dark shadows. "What do you want?" she hissed angrily, her left eye smouldering blue with anger, like the flame she had inherited from Bloom. Her fingers were tightly clenched around the door's edge, gripping it so tightly that the pale girl's knuckles were almost a pure white like snow. "Cat's got your tongue, Your Majesty?" she sneered coldly, snapping the king out of his stupor.

"Just half an hour, Raven," the blond man insisted. "You don't even have to pretend to like it or act civil. Just come to dinner with us and let Bloom see for herself that her daughter is fine, and we can all be done with this ridiculous game— Hey! What are you—?" While he was talking, trying to reason with the girl, his grip on the door had loosened and she had all but pounced upon the chance, wrenching the door away from him entirely and moving to slam the door shut with both hands. Unfortunately for him, she succeeded, much to his consternation. "Raven!"

With a heavy groan of frustration, King Sky Eraklyon just laid his head on the door, pressing his forehead against the cool metal as if it would solve all his problems. He picked up the light clicking of heels on the polished marble floor of the Domino palace private wing, and he raised his head to look over at where his redheaded wife was standing. "Bloom," he breathed with a sigh, his shoulders slumping. The man raked a hand through his hair, messing up the perfectly-groomed short hair. "I'm sorry, Bloom, I couldn't get her to come for dinner."

The former Guardian of the Dragon's Flame shook her head with a small, weak smile, brushing her long, wild red hair back over her shoulder. "Don't be," she said softly. Blue eyes fluttered shut as Bloom exhaled heavily. "She's... she's a stubborn one. Just like me," she said with a weak smile that tugged painfully at Sky's heartstrings. Bloom exhaled slowly, leaning on the wall next to the doors where Sky was resting his weight. "It just feels like yesterday when we made that choice that destroyed any chance of reconciliation with her," she confessed softly. "And just yesterday when we got her back."

The blond king fell silent, Sky thinking back to the times around thirteen years back, when the girl inside the room was still a young toddler. He could still remember the few months after Bloom had just given birth when the two newly-crowned royals were struggling to take care of their now jointly-connected kingdoms as well as a newborn child. They had had too much trouble taking care of the infant girl, even when there were nannies around to help take care of the child. The two couldn't balance their work and family life at all, but they wanted to.

High King Oritel and High Queen Miriam of Domino, Raven's maternal grandparents, had offered to take care of the child, and for a few months, they had, taking their retirement to coddle their only grandchild. It hadn't lasted long, though, because the Trix, having broken out of another maximum-security prison, had arrived to take their revenge on Bloom for putting them there, and they had razed part of the Domino palace — the family wing where the High Monarchs had been residing — down to the ground. It was only by chance that Raven had been outside the wing, and escaped a fiery grave, though unfortunately, Oritel and Miriam had not been so lucky.

Terrified of the event repeating, and this time actually claiming the life of the new bearer of the Dragon's Flame, Bloom and Sky had decided, after the mourning period, to send Raven away. They had screened several couples, finally settling on Cassie and Ralph Quinn, the former a fire fairy with blond hair, and the latter an Earth-born warlock with bright red hair, with reasonably similar features to the royal couple, though not in the same combination. Having reached an agreement with the Eraklyon-dwelling couple, the royal duo had sent the girl to them, asking them to raise her as a normal child until they could safely come for her years later.

The day it happened, it was total chaos.

* * *

"Mum, Dad?" Raven peeked out from behind the wall that separated the living room from the dining room, the ten-year-old girl's long strawberry blonde hair falling over half of her face from under the pulled-up hood of her black jacket. "You called me? Is there something that you want to talk to me about?" When the blue eyes that she had inherited from Sky, she stared before immediately pulling back out of sight, only coming out again upon Cassie Quinn's gentle coaxing. "Hello, Your Majesties," she mumbled reluctantly upon further prompting.

Bloom smiled gently down at the girl, bending down a little so she could look her daughter in the eye. "Hello, Raven," she said gently, opening her arms to the girl. "Come here and let me see you?" she requested, her blue eyes glistening with unshed tears at the joy of finally seeing her daughter after nearly ten full years of not seeing the girl. "I've missed you," she said softly, though it was loud enough for the girl to see, and it earned her a strange look as Raven reluctantly walked over to her after being ushered towards the royal couple by the two that had raised her.

"Again...?"

"Rae, hun," Cassie said, the blonde Fairy of Fire moving closer to her ward, speaking with a heavy accent that was native to the border towns of Eraklyon's capital city. She moved gracefully, the slender woman kneeling down beside the strawberry blonde. "There's something your father and I... no, Ralph and I have to tell you. We're not your parents, sweetie." Seeing the look of confusion cross the girl's face, she added immediately. "Well, not your parents by blood. You see, Ralph and I took you in when you were a baby and we've raised you until now. Biologically, you're the child of Their Majesties, and... it's time you went home."

Raven frowned, her brow furrowing deep together in a look of concentration that looked almost out of place in a child that young. "But..." she started slowly, tilting her head to a side, "... I don't want that. I'm happy here, with you and dad, and my school and everything else. Mum, you can't... you can't make me go with them!" she shouted, her volume rising sharply as she pointed at the royal couple. "They... they didn't even raise me for most of my life, and now they're just waltzing in and demanding me to go back?! _No!_ You can't do that!"

"Raven," Sky said, stepping forward. He knelt down to look up at the almost hysterical girl, reaching out to her, only for the girl to flinch away, shifting behind Cassie's form with an expression of anger and fear. "You have to understand, Raven. We _wanted_ to raise you, I swear on the Great Dragon. We wanted to, but we couldn't. We had to run both kingdoms at the same time, and it was so overwhelming that we could barely spend time with you. And you were in so much danger in the palace. Your maternal grandparents — they died when they were attacked in the palace. This was the only way we could keep you safe from harm."

The girl's blue eyes flared a brighter shade in anger, fire almost visibly burning in her eyes. "So that's your excuse?" she hissed. "I'm not going with you!" She stomped her foot, the heavy combat boots she was wearing making a loud 'thud' on the hardwood floor. "You might have had your reasons, but that's not an excuse to want me back now! I'm staying here! I don't want to leave mum and dad!"

Ralph stepped forward, the man shooting a stern look at the girl that made her instantly fall silent. The warlock put a hand on Raven's head, gently ruffling her waist-length hair. "Rae, c'mon," he said gently. "You can always come back to visit us. Now I don't want to let you go either; if this was any other situation, you could bet that your mum and I would be fighting the court battle with all we got, but... this isn't that scenario, kiddo. You've gotta let this go — make the best of it, y'know?" Crouching down to meet her at eye level, the redhead gave her a weak smile.

"I don't want to, dad!" Raven wiped furiously at her eyes with a shuddering inhale. "I don't want to go..."

"Oh, hun," Cassie said softly, kneeling down and pulling her into a hug. "I promise, it'll be fine. Just be a good girl like what we've taught you, okay, sweetie? You'll make us proud." Giving the strawberry blonde a tight squeeze and kiss to the crown of her head, the blonde slowly got up. "We love you, hun," Cassie said gently. With a light push, she guided Raven towards the royal couple. She sighed, closing her eyes as Ralph got to his feet, pulling her into a hug.

Slowly and reluctantly, Raven walked towards the royal couple and they began to leave, though not before Sky thanked the Quinns for their help. They had scarcely taken ten more steps away before the crackling of flames reached their ears, and Raven spun back before she tried to run from the king and queen. "Mum, dad!" she shrieked, and for good reason too, for the house had suddenly gone up in flames. She attempted to lunge forward to run back into the flames, but Sky reached out, grabbing her and pulling her back.

Bloom transformed into her Enchantix form, and the former fairy of the Dragon's Flame flew off to try and control the flames from spreading even as Sky pulled Raven away. the sounds of a fight could be heard as the queen traded blows with a trio of familiar witches.

* * *

Bloom exhaled slowly as came out of the memory, and she looked at her husband, her lips pressed tightly together into a grim line. That day four years ago had ended in disaster. Ralph perished in the fire, and Cassie had managed to survive long enough to fight with her against the Trix, only to die in the ensuing fight, speared right through the throat by one of Icy's icicle attacks. She swallowed down an uncomfortable lump in her throat before she ran a hand through her red hair. Even though she didn't let it get to her in front of the girl, the accusations that she plainly didn't care for Raven hurt.

Perhaps the girl was right. She was an unfit mother. It was maybe for the best that she couldn't have another child.

"Sky..." she called, trailing off a little as the blond man looked over at her. Bloom pressed her lips together. "We... we need to get to Alfea. I've contacted Miss Faragonda and I've found out something very alarming, and it has to do with our children." She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply. "This is... this is _big_ , Sky. This is very important. We need to head to Alfea as soon as we can. I need to tell all the girls."

The blond king stared at her for a while before Sky seemed to process the words properly. "Right, I've got it," he said, reluctantly moving away from Raven's door. "Bloom, can you try to coax her out? I'll go and get the ship ready for travel to Alfea. Do you need me to call the others?"

Bloom shook her head. "I'll do it. Thanks, Sky." As she watched her husband hurry down the hallway to settle the rest of their duties for the day, she brought out her phone and rang up a conference call with the other five members of the Winx Club. One by one, each of the girls appeared on the screens: perfectly primed Stella, sharply dressed Tecna, slightly harried Musa, casually dressed Aisha, and finally dirt-covered Flora. "Girls, no time to explain, I need you to get your kids and come to Alfea — just your oldest, Aisha. Hurry, girls. We meet at Miss Faragonda's office." With affirmative responses, she ended the call and turned to the doors.

The redhead inhaled deeply. She had to get started.

* * *

Hours later, Bloom tapped her foot anxiously as the Lisandre family — Flora, Helia and their daughter Lilliana — entered Faragonda's office room, which had been magically expanded to hold the nineteen total people. The room was lined with chairs in a circle that included the aged headmistress' desk so the wizened fairy wouldn't have to stand for too long. As soon as they took their seats, the redhead looked around, making the headcounts and finally breathing a sigh of relief when she counted everyone present.

Faragonda stood as the door shut behind them, the aged fairy looking very much like she had when the girls had graduated over two decades ago. She clapped her hands together to get everyone's attention and began to speak. "Winx, Specialists, it is a pleasure to have you all here again. As you all know, Bloom and I have been in contact, and recently, we've come across a... crisis, so to speak."

"Right," Stella muttered, the blonde queen flipping her long ponytail over her shoulder. "So, what's the sitch? Are the Trix witches back again with some new powers and the Magix dimension needs us to kick their a— ahem, their behinds all the way back to the Omega Dimension?" She immediately corrected herself before she cursed, still as flippant as ever, though she did seem a little annoyed as she had been pulled away from something that was seemingly important, or so she had told Bloom when she arrived with Brandon and her daughter Maho.

"Don't jinx us, Stella," Tecna said with a heavy sigh. "Please. I'm busy enough as it is."

Bloom shook her head. Raising her voice a little, she spoke, "Kids, could all of you head outside for a while? We need some private time to discuss some more mature topics that I don't think you girls should be hearing about just yet. It won't be for too long, but you're welcome to walk around Alfea, as long as you don't get yourselves into trouble, alright?" Her question was met with several agreements from the Winx as well as the girls as the teens began walking out.

As soon as the door clicked shut behind Naida, Aisha's oldest daughter, Bloom stood up, allowing Faragonda to take her seat. The redhead queen sighed softly to herself as she steeled her nerves, inhaling deeply. "Girls, boys," she added after a momentary pause to acknowledge the others' respective spouses, "I've got a story to tell you, and it's about something you may or may not have heard about before. It's known as the Dragon Powers." Closing her eyes as Faragonda dimmed the lights in the office for her presentation, Bloom said, "Let's begin."

Summoning a sliver of flame to her bare hands, the redhead spoke, "Once, long ago, the Great Dragon created Magix. It eventually came to rest on Domino and left behind the eternally burning flame that came to be known as the Dragon's Flame, which has since been passed down from generation to generation of the Dominese royal family — the flame that I once bore. This story is the one known to everyone in the Magix Dimension, known as our story of creation. However, so much was left out of this old tale that few people ever learn about. Recently, I came to know about the full story."

The flame in her hand expanded into the form of a dragon to illustrate her story, before part of it broke off into another dragon. "We all thought that there was one Dragon. There were six. The second dragon known not to the world was called the Holy Dragon. It brought light to the dimensions, reflecting light off its scales and glowing exactly as the sun would. It was bright and golden and it created the stars and the suns. It finally came to rest, just as the Great Dragon did, laying to eternal sleep on Solaria. The Dragon's Light it bore passed not to a Solarian, but it joined with the Dragon's Flame.

"Then, the third dragon. The Mother Dragon, as it was called, was a beautiful, druid-like creature, an earthy dragon that brought life and love to the worlds it came to. Plants grew, crops flourished, life thrived under its care." A third dragon broke off from the largest one, circling the first two. "It was just like Mother Nature, you could say, covered in beautiful flowers, vines and gleaming green scales. It landed on Linphea for its eternal rest, and even in death, it gave more life to the planet, which only further flourished and thrived. The Dragon's Nature it bore left it and returned to the Flame.

"The fourth dragon was a bold red and white, elegant and also dangerous. Known only as the Muse Dragon, it had power over sound, able to destroy planets with its mighty roar. It was a fearsome warrior, defending its brethren where the others could not, and was even similar to a gladiator in ways, an entertainer that was the deadliest of opponents to face. At the same time, it lived up to its name; an inspiring muse for writers and artists, who could see stories and ideas in its scales as it passed them." Another dragon form split off, moving in a sharp, threatening manner. "Lying to rest on Melody, the Dragon's Roar passed back to the flame."

A fifth dragon emerged, circling the others as its scales reformed by the flames to look like plated armour. "The fifth dragon was known as the Platinum Dragon, scaled entirely with platinum scales that made it akin to an android. It moved robotically, and like its sister dragon in the Muse Dragon, it was a fighter, protecting the others quite fiercely. It was calculating, sharp, and had powerful lasers in its breath. It could conduct electronics to its fancy, enable them to do things they could never do on their own, and once it laid to rest on Zenith, the Dragon's Data it wielded was given back to the flame.

"And finally, the Serpent Dragon was the last of the six to live and to die. The tale that told of it was never quite clear on whether it was a dragon or a serpent as its name suggested, but it thrived in the oceans and that was where it lived, giving life and protecting the seas. Its powers reigned over all sea life and waters in general." The last dragon broke free from the main one, and all six dragons began encircling each other. "It resided in the oceans of Andros, where it finally passed deep in the depths of the seas, and with it, the Dragon's Ocean was passed back to the flame."

Bloom clapped her hands together and snuffed all the flames out. "The Dragon's Flame has been passed down for years without incident, and so, people began to forget about the other five Dragons. And then one day, one bearer of the Flame split it into six, and gave five parts to her friends, leaving one part to herself."

"Wait, Bloom, you don't mean to say—" Aisha started, but Bloom cut her off.

"Girls. I gave you part of the Dragon's Flame. And when you had your children, you passed that bit of flame down to them, as did I to Raven. The Dragon Powers are returning because of this — they sense that the Flame has been broken up. They're going to manifest themselves in the girls when their magic does. The Dragon's Flame will lead them to activate." Bloom inhaled deeply. "Our girls are going to be harbouring some of the most powerful sources of magic in the entire Magix Dimension."

The room burst into chaos as everyone started firing rapid questions toward Bloom and Faragonda, some of them not even complete in their franticness.

In the ensuing chaos, no one noticed the six girls that were standing right outside the slightly open door.


	2. Tiara

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Tiara was submitted to me by AntoRodriguez27. I have since added some edits for the need of the story, but her basic character has not been changed. Do You Want To Build A Snowman is copyright of Disney — I'm just using it because it's fun.

Tiara wasn't really sure how she had gotten into this situation, or, well, any of the situations she normally got herself into. This one was different, though, very different.

The girl reached a hand up to twirl her bobbed brunette hair, the bright orange-brown shade of hair she inherited from her father very visible through the corner of her cyan eyes. She chewed on her lower lip anxiously as she moved closer to her left, staring at the other five girls that now stood around in the hallway just outside the office belonging to Headmistress Faragonda of Alfea College. These were the daughters of her mother's best friends, she told herself, and it was absolutely shocking that she'd never met any of them — with the sole exception of her very best friend forever, Harmony — before.

The fourteen-year-old girl sidled up to her petite best friend who stood half a head shorter than she was, beaming delightedly at the magenta-haired girl. "Hey Harmy," she said, opening her arms wide for a hug with her bestie. She grinned enthusiastically and wrapped her arms around the other girl, who returned the hug with just as much affection and enthusiasm. "What's life on Melody? How are you? What's the Melody palace like? Made any new friends? Are your parents still arguing over that stupid carpet colour in the living room?" she rambled on.

Harmony laughed, shaking her head and making her low-worn blunt-cut pigtails bob to the sides. "Whoa, whoa, Tia, slow down!" She giggled, patting Tiara's back and pulling back. "I'm so glad to see you again. Uh, let me see... it's alright, I'm fine, it's really big, not really, and yep," she counted off her fingers, running through them again and nodding. "Yep, that's about it. So what about you? You mentioned the last time we talked on the phone that your parents were teaching you to code? How are the lessons going?"

The brunette smoothed out her pink polo shirt with a mild shrug. "Mum's teaching me about the basic code of the interwebs, but we've gotten through most of the course in a few weeks and dad says he thinks I'm ready to move up to the advanced coding courses," she said eagerly. "And don't tell anyone, but—" Tiara leaned in close to Harmony's ear, "— I'm learning how to hack from the web. So far, I've been able to break my way into some criminal rings and left a message for the cops through a few dozen proxy servers."

"Whoa." Harmony poked her in the chest. "Careful there, Tia. That's really dangerous. Anyway..." The petite girl's navy eyes shifted around to glance at the other four girls. "What're we supposed to do until our parents are done with their 'adult' talk?" she asked, using her fingers to make the air quotes, even as her sarcastic tone emphasised the words enough to highlight her intentions well enough. The magenta-haired girl put her fists on her hips, cocking them out to one side as she observed the other four present — a strawberry blonde in a black hooded jacket, a silver-haired girl with sunglasses, a tanned girl with long dark blue hair, and a darker-skinned girl with a pixie sat on her shoulder.

"Well... let's just break the ice!" Tiara said, her voice loud enough that it caught the others' attention. The brunette clasped her hands together with a smile as she looked around at them. "Hi, I guess. It's nice to meet all of you! Our parents were friends, so I hope we can be good friends too! I'm Tiara, from Zenith! " she said by the way of introduction, her smile bright and infectious. She attempted to meet each of the new faces with firm eye contact, though she shied away by the time she got to the last one, unsure and feeling slightly awkward at the sudden silence.

The silver-haired girl tossed her shoulder-length hair over her shoulder and adjusted the blue jacket she was wearing over a white shirt. Delicately, she raised her sunglasses up and over her head so she could stare at each of them with bright sapphire blue eyes. The bright, shimmering quality of her eyes was a dead giveaway of who she was if the moon and star patterning that covered her jacket and white knee-length skirt hadn't already done that — she was Solarian; Aunt Stella's daughter. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with a regal nod.

Tiara tried not to deflate — she was acting so formal, gosh! She couldn't be more than two years older than Tiara herself, and she was acting like a formal princess already. The brunette tried not to huff at the thought. So this was what a true-bred princess was like, unlike both her and Harmony, who could really only be called princesses in name or by association, for they had no royal blood. Tiara had often heard that true-bred royals usually had some sort of magical power that was hereditary or something like that, like the Dragon's Flame of Domino, or the Solarian heirloom weapons. She frowned a little. _I thought I had gotten that out of my thoughts._

The tanned girl offered them a demure, shy smile, nodding in greeting as her long hair fell over her one of her jade green eyes. She swept the lock of hair aside and adjusted the pink beret she was wearing. "It's... it's nice to meet you too," she said softly, fidgeting with a red hibiscus in her hands, the five petals edged with blue paint splatter-like marks. She shifted a little in her floral green dress and pink pumps, the tall and slender girl looking a little anxious around the group of six stranger — or near strangers. She didn't quite meet anyone's eyes, though she did look around.

"What they said," the girl with the pixie quipped. She tossed her mid-back-length curly brown hair over her shoulder and waved at the collective group of six, though only Tiara actually returned the gesture with the same level of enthusiasm — Harmony was a little wary, the silver-haired girl nodded formally, the tanned girl shyly waved, and the strawberry blonde didn't move at all, just glared with animosity burning in her eyes. The brunette stared back at the girl in black, flinching a little at the glare before she turned back to an enthusiastic conversation with her pixie.

"Uh... um... should we go for a short walk through Alfea?" Tiara suggested again, trying to ignore the awkwardness that burned through her. "You know... since we'll all be coming here to attend in the next few years or so?" Or she would assume, anyway. Her mother had always told her she was one of the youngest 'second generation Winx', as the media often called the children of the Winx, after all, so she guessed that the other girls were perhaps only one or two years older. They could be more, but they didn't seem like it, or so she was assuming.

"Sure. Why not?" the strawberry blonde muttered, shoving her hands into the pockets of her black jacket. "It's not like this day is going to get any worse if I do. Then again, it's not going to get better if I do either." The negativity that practically oozed from the girl made Tiara just shiver, even though she was standing far away from the girl. People like her never made Tiara very comfortable — Tiara didn't like dark colours either, and she was wearing enough to make the entirety of Cloud Tower jealous. Still, the brunette hoped that she would be nice once she opened up — she was the daughter of one of the Winx Club, after all, and they were all nice!

It was uneasy at first as the group made their way down the hall, but as they passed a window, Tiara stopped, looking out at the fountain in the middle of Alfea's courtyard. The other girls that had passed her backtracked quickly too, obviously having noticed that she had suddenly vanished from the group. The awkward group of six stood in front of the window, some of them looking out the window out towards the forest, others starting to speak with each other — in particular, the tanned girl and the girl with the pixie were seeming to hit it off well with each other.

"Hey Harm, you remember playing outside in the snow just beyond Zenith's Central Palace Fountain?" Tiara asked her best friend with a sad tone tingeing her voice. She remembered the last time the two of them had been there together as clear as crystal. It had been the last day that the two of them had seen each other in person until now. Sure, they had stayed in contact through calls and video chats, but it just wasn't the same as playing together. The two had practically grown up with each other and suddenly being apart after twelve years had been painful for the best friends forever.

* * *

"Harmy!" A younger Tiara — eleven, approaching twelve — had made a break out of the palace as soon as her tutor had approved of her leaving her classes. The young girl, decked out in a full set of purple and pink snow gear, had made a beeline towards one of the houses in Zenith's central city, a modest two-storey household where her very best friend for all of forever lived with her parents. Ignoring the snow that always blanketed Zenith's streets, she skipped her way across the unoccupied roads and ran straight up to the door, rapping on the wooden door five times in rapid succession. "Harm?"

When there was no answer even after a good minute give or take, Tiara began to get worried. The five-rep-rap was their _thing_ , as Harmony had so fondly termed and put it. They knew the significance of the five rapid knocks on the door — _I'm here to play! Come on and open the door!_ — so with all said and well, her friend should have come running down the stairs from her room and thrown the door open. She had never known a time when the other girl wasn't at home — Harmony didn't like going out to anywhere, and she always told Tiara before she did, so she _had_ to be home, right?

Deciding to pull off one last-ditch effort, Tiara squeezed herself up against the door's keyhole, cupping her hands around her mouth. Their play-song always got her running out to play if she was in a bad mood. It couldn't hurt to try, right? "Harmony?" she called through the keyhole, hearing her voice echo in the living room beyond the door. "I'm gonna sing, okay? Sing with me and let's come out to play! _Do you wanna build a snowman? Come on, let's go and play! I haven't seen you in a while; come out the door; have you perhaps gone away?_ "

Tiara frowned. All she could hear was her own voice echoing. She moved a little, bending down a little to let herself look at the living room through the keyhole. _How strange,_ she thought to herself. _It's all dark... Usually Uncle Riven's in the living room working on his laptop or something, or Aunt Musa's on the couch practising her guitar, but there's no one there at all. Maybe they've gone out? ... no, that's not answering anything. Harmy would still be in the living room and watching the television. Maybe she's upstairs in her room, then?_

Shaking her head, the brunette girl tried to sing a little louder in hopes that it would catch Harmony's attention. " _Do you wanna build a snowman? It doesn't have to be a snowman..._ " Still no answer. Despite the worry that was mounting in her heart, the young girl decided to know when to give up and just retreat. "Okay, Harmony... if you're not in the mood to play today, I'll go home. Feel better tomorrow, okay? I'll come by then." Reluctantly, the girl pulled herself away from the door to her best friend's house and slowly trudged off. She wondered if her best friend was mad at her for something — she had never been ignored before.

Returning to the Palace of Zenith through the steadily strengthening winter wind, Tiara had to shake off the white that was peppering her bright orange-brown hair before she entered the central courtyard. She pulled off her scarf, letting it drag on the snow-blanketed ground as she trudged back towards the central building — which got the pink wool wet, but she really wasn't in the mood to care at the moment — stopping when she came to the Central Fountain where water was spurting out, cascading down levels to the water catching area. "Harmy... are you alright?"

"Tia? I'm... I'm fine, Tia. Why do you look so sad?"

Tiara perked up instantly, and she spun around, pulling the smaller girl into a tight hug. "Harmy!" she exclaimed with a wide smile at the other girl. "You were out?! That's why you didn't answer the five-rep-rap or the song! I'm so glad that you're not mad at me, Harm!" She pulled her close and squeezed, a wide grin on her face, only for it to fade slightly when she realised that Harmony wasn't as responsive as the petite girl usually was. "... Harmony..? You're not... actually mad at me... are you?" Tiara asked hesitantly. That would be her worst nightmare personified if it was the truth.

"Wha—? N-no... Tia, I just..." Harmony started, her tears welling up in her eyes, and only then did Tiara realise that the pale girl had tear stains going down her face — she had just been crying when she'd seen Tiara. Rubbing at her eyes, the magenta-haired girl suddenly lunged forward, hugging Tiara back with a loud wail of sadness, her tears finally spilling over as the petite girl sobbed hard, which caught the brunette off guard — Harmony was the tough one of the two of them. She _never_ cried, not even when her parents had a bad argument. This had to be serious.

Tiara let Harmony cry into the purple windbreaker until the shorter girl seemed to have gotten it out of her system, her body still shaking a little. "Harmony... what's wrong?" she asked concernedly, pulling back to look at her best friend at arm's length. "Are you okay? You've never just broken down like this — did your parents argue again? What're you doing outside without a proper jacket? Do your parents know you're here? Do my parents know? Do you need to go inside? Sit down? Are you feeling alright? Cold? Scared? Anythi—"

" _Tiara!_ " Harmony suddenly screamed, which made the girl stop her uncertain ramblings, staring at her best friend uncertainly. The magenta-haired girl rubbed at her eyes, trying to get her pigtailed hair out of her eyes. "M-mum says that we're moving, Tiara." Her voice had dropped to barely a whisper, a jarring contrast to the scream earlier. "S-she says that... Queen Galatea is running away... Mum's been asked by her to take over the throne a-and we have to go to Melody... I'm scared, Tia. I don't want to leave Zenith... I've grown up here! If I leave, I'm going to lose so much!" Burying her face in her hands, the girl wailed again.

Tiara felt like she had suddenly been rooted to the ground. Moving? There was no way that could happen, right? Aunt Musa and Uncle Riven and Harmony had been living in Zenith since forever — they couldn't just up and uproot their lives now because of the whims of one woman! Harmony would be losing her school, her friends, and the familiarity of her home for a big, drafty palace and a court full of stuck-up, snobby nobles that didn't want anything except for more money and power and influence. It felt like her heart was breaking.

With a trembling lower lip, Tiara forced herself to move, realising that her best friend was shivering from the cold now, being outside without any proper attire. "L-let's go inside... Harmy... Let's get something hot to drink..." She hiccuped a little as she said the last part, putting her hands on Harmony's shoulder and gently nudging her friend inside. Hot tears were prickling her eyes now, but she tried to keep her voice steady. "L-let's just..." she swallowed, "...find something to do." _And make the most of our time together, even if I don't want you to go._

Tiara left that unsaid. That was the last day she had seen Harmony since, and for the first time in their lives, the girls didn't spend their individual birthdays with each other. They would only see each other after two more years.

* * *

"How could I forget?" Harmony murmured, and Tiara — fourteen-year-old Tiara now —snapped back to reality from her memories. "We used to play there whenever it was warm enough... It was the last place I met you at before we moved back to Melody." Discreetly, the magenta-haired girl reached a hand up, wiping a tear from the corner of her eyes. "I missed that place. Melody has fountains too, but Aria's fountains just aren't the same... they're not as visually impressive as the ones on Zenith." She shook her head, the short, choppy pigtails that were tied low at the nape of her neck bouncing at the motion.

"Yeah..." Tiara exhaled slowly. "I miss playing there with you. The snow fights we had in winter were always fun, and all of the chasing games we had in the spring and summer under the sprinklers were great too. I miss those times back then," she said with a slow, fond sigh, "but we're already too old to play like that, even if we lived close together." She shook her head, a small, fond smile playing on her lips at the memories of the two of them as young children, chasing each other with huge amounts of glee in the manner that only children could.

Harmony laughed weakly. "Yeah. Those were good times. Things are different now, huh? We're older and grown-up now. It'll be our turn to attend Alfea like our mums before us did, and then it'll be our chance to become insanely powerful fairies. Who knows...? We might even form a Winx Club of our own. We'd be the awesome Neo-Winx! Or, erm, Winx Club Two-Point-Oh, or maybe the Second-Gen-Winx Club! Or, _or_ , uh... the... Winx Club Junior?" Finishing up with a rather lame naming scheme, Harmony just laughed weakly. "Guess not everything changes — I'm still bad at naming things."

The brunette laughed at that, joining in with her friend's uneasy chuckles. "I guess so," she said, smiling warmly at her best friend. "But I don't think I'd mind being a part of the Winx Club Junior... well, at least until I'm over eighteen," she mused aloud. "Then I'd want to at least have the Junior part taken out since I'd be a fully-graduated Enchantix fairy by then!" She enthusiastically pumped her fist up into the air at the thought of achieving her Enchantix transformation even though she had yet to even achieve her initial transformation.

"Thinking that far already, you two?" the silver-haired girl asked them, arching a brow. "How old are you — fourteen? Maybe you should wait a few more years before being so determined to form a clique just like our mothers did. You might not even end up in the same dorm room, and then if you did form a club, you'd perhaps only form it with your dormmates," she pointed out, shrugging a little. The girl pushed herself away from the pink and blue walls. "And with the fact that we're all of different ages, there's really no choice for us all to form that band of heroes."

Tiara shrugged a little. "It's a nice thought, though," she pointed out with a smile. "It would be like a dream, right? For us all to follow in our mothers' footsteps and make something out of ourselves. It would make our families a heroic legacy, and that would be just purely awesome, don't you think? Just imagine it," she uttered, raising her hands up in a motion like she was framing a picture to be taken. "Six fairies, the most powerful of their generation, living up to a great legacy that has been led down for years and years!"

"Would you rather do that and live in your parents' shadow all the time then?" the sunglasses-wearing girl asked, tossing her silver hair over her shoulder. She shifted, bracing both her hands on her hips. She frowned slightly at the two teens, and though her sunglasses were down over her eyes, the disapproval in them was almost tangible, and Tiara wondered why she was so against following in their mothers' footsteps.

It wasn't like there was anything big about it, right? It was just a nice thought, and didn't most kids aspire to be just like their parents at some point, anyway?

"Don't get me wrong," the other girl said, and Tiara jolted back to attention, "I adore my mother. Idolise her, you may even say. However, once you are defined by the pure value of being 'her daughter', you start realising that you have no basis of your own. You're simply the child of someone famous, and you're building off their name to make your own. In the end, it is unlikely that you will be able to leave their shadow to stand on your own."

"I guess you have your point," Tiara said with a shrug. "But in the end, I guess it's just a dream for me. It's not like we're going to form a club, huh?" Laughing it off somewhat awkwardly as the group made their way down the hallway, the brunette turned her attention back to Harmony.

She had no idea that she had made a statement that would eventually become true.


	3. Harmony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Harmony was submitted to me by Makana345786. I have since added some edits for the need of the story, but her basic character has not been changed.

Harmony felt so small. She had always been a little on the petite side — it was hereditary on her mother's side, as she had learnt when she had asked her parents why she was so short compared to her classmates at twelve — but Alfea was literally _huge_ , like a giant, sprawling campus huge, and it completely and utterly dwarfed her petite form. She felt even smaller next to Tiara and the other girls, who were all taller than her by at least half a head — some even two heads. She hadn't ever had to look up at Tiara before she moved away, but her best friend had obviously had a growth spurt since they last met in person.

Comparing herself — still ridiculously petite, with the same short, pigtailed hairstyle and looking nothing like the teenager she was supposed to be — to Tiara — taller, with shorter hair and looking more like a teen now — Harmony wondered if she just wasn't eating right. Her mother and her grandfather — the last time she had seen him, at least — weren't _that_ short, right? She had always thought they were average in height, if not kind of tall, though that might have just been because she was always so freaking tiny. That thought didn't really help her mood.

As the group of six girls walked down the pink and blue hallways of Alfea College for Fairies, the magenta-haired girl couldn't help but glance at each one of them, mentally assigning them names for her to keep track of them easily. The girl with blue hair was designated 'Flower Girl'; the silver-haired girl wearing the glasses became 'Shades'; the girl with the pixie was named 'Pixie', and the girl in black was 'Brooding'. She wasn't entirely sure about the last one since it didn't flow off the tongue as easily, but until she had a better one, she'd stick with it.

Speaking of the girl... the strawberry blonde looked very frustrated and irritated by just standing in the pink and blue hallways. Brooding kept well and away from the rest of the group, and the all-black garb she wore just practically designated her as a witch-in-training and a moody, wanna-be goth or emo punk like the girls from her old school at Zenith had been. The girl's appearance and actions just screamed 'rebel for the sake of rebelling', and Harmony wasn't sure if she wanted to be around someone like that, even if she wasn't the best rules-follower herself.

Harmony took a glance at the other girls — Pixie and Flower Girl seemed to be having a great time speaking to each other, and Pixie's pixie was fluttering around their heads as Flower Girl extended the flower she was holding, the two presumably moving onto talking about the dual-coloured flower that she was holding. Tiara had moved ahead at some point and was trying to talk to Shades out of her formal stiffness, and from the slight lowering of the silver-haired girl's shoulder, it seemed as if it was working so far. She hurried forward to catch up to them, not wanting to stay too close to Miss Doom and Gloom back there.

The petite girl managed to catch up just in time to hear the end of what Shades was saying to Tiara, though she really didn't understand the terms being thrown about. What the heck was the difference between rose and bubblegum? Both were pink, for the Dragon's sake. This was why she didn't like going to tailor or the wallpaper/paint department of her local general store — the choices for everything were nearly the exact same, only labelled different names and then people expected her to choose one of the two? It was pure and utter nonsense.

"— so yes, the colour balance is off," Shades concluded as she clasped her hands behind her back, looking oh-so-much like how Harmony's father did when he was expected to appear in public, though it was a considerably more feminine stance than the king of Melody usually took, with both of her white-booted feet stood together and her shoulders back, though her back was straight, not pushing her chest out as Harmony's father did. "Ah, nice to see you've caught up," she remarked, raising her shades from her eyes to reveal her sapphire eyes. "And... you are...?"

"Oh... uh, me?" Harmony blinked, realising that the other three girls had caught up at this point because she, Tiara and Shades has been standing in place. She bit back her rising temper when she realised that nearly everyone had their eyes on her — everyone except Brooding, who looked utterly disinterested — looking expectantly at her, waiting for her to do something. The magenta-haired girl reached a hand up to scratch the back of her head, taking the chance to tug anxiously at the choppy ends of her shoulder-length pigtails.

Tiara put a hand on her shoulder and nodded vigorously, giving Harmony an enthusiastic, encouraging smile as she stepped back to the petite girl, making small, vague motions with her hands that Harmony only barely caught, much to her chagrin. Tiara seemed to _want_ Harmony to embarrass herself with her total lack of comfort around the strangers that made up the odd group of six.

With no choice but to comply, the magenta-haired girl gave in, still fidgetting with the frizzy ends of her short, pigtailed hair. She inhaled deeply, then started, not quite having an idea of what to do except copy Tiara wholesale. The highest form of flattery was imitation, right? "Uh... hi. I'm Harmony, from Melody. It's... nice to meet you all," she finished lamely. _Oh, great job, Harmony_ , she thought to herself in frustration. _Your chance for a good first impression is done. Gone._ She huffed to herself, tugging further on her pigtails.

Shades gave her a long hard glance through the sapphire blue eyes, a frown on her face as she studied Harmony, nearly making the petite girl cringe from the cool aloofness that radiated from the older — at least, Harmony presumed she was older — girl. "You should stop doing that," she said with a slightly haughty-sounding sniff, reaching back up to lower her eponymous shades over her eyes. Catching sight of Harmony's quizzical expression, she made a motion towards the petite girl's hands. "That, I mean. Stop touching and fiddling with your hair when you speak. You look nervous and vulnerable — amateurish."

 _Amateurish?_ Harmony echoed in her mind. _What? I'm not a public speaker or anything, for goodness' sake! I'm still learning how to speak in front of crowds!_ Inwardly, she fumed a little at her own presumptions before she caught herself, reminding herself silently that the other girl didn't know and she was simply jumping to conclusions again, as well as simply trying to justify her own insecurities. "Right, right, sorry," she mumbled, averting her gaze briefly as she dropped her hands. A pause, then she sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Thanks."

"For a princess, you don't seem very capable of speaking in a manner that inspires confidence," Shades noted, raising her head slightly in an incline that came across as momentarily terribly arrogant to Harmony, who fought back the irritation as soon as she felt it rise. "Public speaking is a very essential skill all royals should learn at some point. I would be happy to extend some form of aid or give you some tips if you would like." She pursed her lips together. "Call it some form of solidarity between fellow princesses, perhaps?" She arched a silver brow at Harmony.

The girl growled briefly. "I'm not a princess," she said defensively, hugging herself with a huff, her shoulders slumping a little as Tiara gently patted her shoulder, giving her a light squeeze when her best friend placed her hand on Harmony's shoulder. She sighed, the tension in her small body dropping almost instantly as the girl gave it up — at this point, there was zero deniability, she supposed. "I'm just a commoner girl that somehow became a princess because Her ex-Majesty Galatea Staff decided to run away with some man that the Melodese nobles didn't like. They approached my parents and somehow talked them into becoming King and Queen of Melody."

Harmony chose not to mention how, yes, she would actually really like and appreciate some help with her weak public speaking. She would leave that as a matter to bring up with her personal tutor once she got home.

Harmony's fists tightened into balls in her anger, and she huffed irritably, drawing her shoulders up towards her ears as she drew in deep breaths to try and calm herself down, like the self-help tutorials for anger management she had been looking up were saying. The petite girl grit her teeth as she remembered what had happened when they had first moved to Melody's grand central palace in Aria, feeling the anger and irritation rise up within her again, this time only narrowly quelled by Tiara's presence, reminding her that what she had been so angry about during that time was now no longer true — at least, for the moment.

* * *

Twelve-year-old, newly-crowned Princess Harmony of Melody screamed in frustration as she paced relentlessly in her new room, the largeness of the chambers dwarfing the petite little girl. The rich red carpet that covered the marble floor was slowly getting worn out by the furious pacing of the petite girl, as were the soles on the white and maroon sneakers she insisted on wearing everywhere. The rich purple and reds that decorated the room made it utterly foreign compared to the softer, pastel reds and whites that had been the focus of her old bedroom back in Zenith, and it only served as another painful reminder that she may never see her best friend again.

The girl's magenta hair was frazzled and messy, obviously unbrushed, judging from the way it was sticking up everywhere and then some. The short, stubby pigtails she kept at the nape of her neck were just barely held in place, having taken on the shape of the pigtails she always wore from over seven years of wearing her hair that way despite the lack of her usual twist ties or even a rubber band to hold them together. Harmony was still dressed in her street clothes, stubborn and angry at the thought of ditching the comfortable casual clothes she had worn for years in favour of long flowing dresses that were mandated by the noble laws.

In her anger, Harmony yelled out incoherently as she threw a — admittedly, rather sloppy — punch at the large, worn teddy bear she had always kept within her room since she was a child, ignoring the stitches her mother had put into place whenever she 'accidentally' tore it up while 'playing' with it. The punch missed the cute, overly-stuffed animal entirely, but it knocked the plush to the floor, just within reach of Harmony's legs, and the petite girl stomped hard on the stuffed bear, letting the stuffing explode out from the toy's stitches to dust the bed, walls, and floor in snowy white cotton that just erupted like a volcano from the toy.

Muttering a few rude words as she violently shook out the fluffy stuffing from her hair — inadvertently loosening her frizzy hair from the rigid pigtails they had settled in to fan out statically around her head — Harmony plopped down on her bed gracelessly like a sack of potatoes, ignoring the stuffing that covered the maroon sheets. She didn't even like maroon or purple, even if her hair was slightly purple from the magenta shade she'd inherited from her father. The softness of the bed was unreal — it was too soft, dang it! Her old bed was springy and had some actual substance to it other than just being a bundle of feathers where she'd end up drowning in.

"Why?" she asked herself aloud, fighting back hot tears of anger and frustration at being ripped mercilessly out of her old life and thrust into this one. Her small fist raised up into the air — bits of stuffing sticking stubbornly to it — and she threw as much force as she could muster into thrusting it down onto the bed, sending the cotton stuffing flying all over into the air again. This time, Harmony did make a reaction — she wailed in frustration as she repeatedly smacked her fists into the bed, grabbing the pillows and throwing them to the other side of the room.

Lying on her back, Harmony's navy eyes locked blankly on the white ceiling, the only thing in the room that vaguely resembled her old room, if not for the gaudy chandelier that was hanging from the middle of the unreasonably big bedroom. With an audibly unsatisfied groan at her tantrum of destruction, Harmony rolled over, trying to hide her gaze entirely and burying her face in the maroon silk that covered the lavish bed she flopped spinelessly on. "I hate this so much," she whispered to herself. Her voice suddenly rose up into a scream. "Dang it! I hate this so much!"

A knock came at her door — one of the new maids that were now reassigned to serving the new royal family or something, and she ignored the call, turning over in her fluff-covered bed and curling up into a small ball. She just wanted to be left alone, for the Dragon's sake! Harmony wanted to be in the living room of her old home, curled up in the middle of the sofa where her parents were seated, all three of them sprawled out across the worn, beat-up leather and watching one of the silly cartoon movies they always did at the Winter Solstice, enjoying some buttery popcorn or other snacks.

"Harmony, can you hear me, my little cadence?" It wasn't a maid like Harmony had assumed — the new ruler of Melody was standing outside her room, deep concern lacing her voice as she spoke to the girl inside. "Your father and I are concerned for you, Harmony. You didn't come down for dinner today. I understand that it's hard to move across dimensions like this, losing that sense of familiarity you're used to having back in Zenith, but you have to try and see this from our point of view, Harmony. It's for the greater good across the world. I'm not saying that you have to accept this immediately, just... keep an open heart, please?"

With a sob and cry of frustration, Harmony threw the last pillow she had on the bed towards the door, hearing the feather-stuffed pillow make a muted thud against the door. She muffled her face in the sheets to try and mute her scream of frustration at being unable to do anything about her situation. She knew that her parents had their heart in the right place, but for once, she wished that her parents didn't have to be so driven towards justice, and they would think more about her. She wasn't cut out for this — all of this. She couldn't take having people bow to her, couldn't take the increased guard and the sudden limitation. Was this what Tiara had grown up with?

Still, she supposed it was different with Tiara. Her best friend had grown up as the Crown Princess — she had grown up with a squad of fairy guards around her at all times, while Harmony had been allowed to run free since she was able to walk. Tiara had grown used to sneaking out to play with Harmony, while Harmony had become used to waiting outside the palace doors to meet the orange-brunette princess. And while Harmony had always ducked past the servants, who always gave her her due share of respect since her parents were apparently in high standing, Tiara had always returned greetings with a friendly smile and wave.

To be thrust into this role now was jolting — a bad shock to the system. She was thrust into an unfamiliar world and expected to navigate it herself as she rebuilt her world from foundation up. Still, Harmony consoled herself, she _wasn't_ alone. Her parents, both commoners, though with high standing in Magix, were going to have to learn all about this too. She wasn't going to be forced to go about all of this herself. The girl slowly got up from her lying position on the bed, looking at the door where her mother was still talking, asking if she was alright.

Harmony got up from the bed, pushing herself off reluctantly but with a purpose. Her footsteps were heavy, but the girl figured that she was probably just tired after the unreasonably long day. She opened the door and gave her mother — now joined by her father, who was looking immensely uncomfortable in the kingly attire he had been forced to wear — and gave both of them a weak smile. "Sorry I didn't make it for dinner," she told them quietly. "Is it too late to have some supper with my parents?"

Queen Musa beamed at her, kissing her head. "It's never too late to spend time with my darling daughter."

* * *

Fourteen-year-old Harmony blinked when she realised someone was calling her name, drawing herself free of the memory that she had sunk into. "Huh?" she said, blinking navy eyes as she turned back to stare at everyone, cringing at the oh-so-eloquent response. _Oh yes, Harmony,_ she told herself dryly, _that was an absolutely **fabulous** response to give them. You space out for a few minutes, then people call you and you give them proof that you were certainly dreaming. Great job, dummy._ "Sorry," she said, pushing her thoughts aside. "You were saying?"

"I was just asking your opinion about Alfea College," Shades informed her, keeping her briefing simple, yet informative enough to let Harmony formulate a response. "Tiara told me that she couldn't wait until it was her turn to attend. You are both fourteen, yes?" After a short nod from the magenta-haired girl, Shades hummed. "As I thought. It will be my first year once the summer is over — it will be my senior year when you two enrol if you will attend Alfea, of course." Tossing her hair over her shoulder, the silver-haired girl glanced down the hall. "Let's keep going, shall we?"

Harmony huffed. "Of course I'm going to attend Alfea!" she declared loudly, only mentally cringing at how loud her already loud voice was in the empty hallways, hearing it echo again and again. "Why wouldn't I? It's my mother's _alma mater_ , after all." It earned her a bright, though brief, smile from Pixie and Flower Girl, and they both gave her and Tiara a warm and friendly expression, making Harmony feel welcomed, briefly, despite the fact that she felt out of place with all the others, who were tall, slender, and undeniably teenagers in appearance

"Maybe I could show you the way to Pixie Village once you enter your first year in Alfea. You know, let all of us find and bond with our respective pixies — except me, of course," Pixie suggested offhandedly with a grin, holding up a hand so that her pixie could high-five her palm. "I think it would be a fun day trip between friends, right? Even if we're not of the same age, if our mothers were friends, I think it's only right that we are too." She gave them a friendly wink before she pulled Flower Girl along as they raced to catch up with Shades, who was making her way down the hallway of Alfea again. "Hey, wait up for us!" she hollered, yanking a hapless Flower Girl behind her as she took the lead.

"They're getting along well," Tiara remarked brightly, smiling widely. Then, she seemed to start, and she gasped. "Harmy, we're falling behind!" she realised, and she began to run — or well, tried to. Tiara had never been big on athletics, and even after two entire years, it seemed as if that had still held true, much to Harmony's amusement. As much as things could change, some things ever remained the same, it seemed. "If we fall behind, we're going to get lost here," she groaned. "Let's hurry and catch up, Harmy, c'mon!" She started running, but before she could start to lose her breath, Harmony had already sped ahead and grabbed her by the wrist, glad that her short stature didn't make her any slower a runner.

As Harmony and Tiara hurried to catch up and not get left behind, the magenta-haired girl wondered briefly about what Pixie had said to her. She supposed it made sense — our parents are great pals, so naturally, we should be too! — though she couldn't help but wonder if it really was meant to be like that. If each of their parents hadn't had to return to their individual worlds to rule or do whatever they did, would all six of the girls have grown up together, and be best friends just like she and Tiara were? What would that be like, for everyone to be practically sisters in all but blood?

Regardless of that, had the group met earlier, would they have hit it off? If they had been younger then, without the shaped personalities they had now; what would they turn out like now if they had been friends at a younger age? Harmony's mind was filled with thousands of 'what if' scenarios as she wondered why the group of six was like that. All of them were the firstborn children of each of the fairies of the Winx Club, all female, all relatively close in age. It was an incredible coincidence, and Harmony couldn't help but wonder why they weren't all the same age.

Harmony let Tiara guide her as they walked so she didn't smack into a wall as they were turning a corner, too caught up in her imaginations. She supposed that the world never meant for them to be the best of friends from birth. Maybe they were intended to become fast friends forged by fire, just like their mothers were before them? The petite girl didn't fancy herself a believer of fate, but it sounded less like reality and more like one of her mother's favourite action-fantasy novels that way. It made her feel almost as if she has a great destiny to fulfil.

Whether she knew it or not, Harmony was completely right.


	4. Naida

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Naida was submitted to me by The Lady Cloudy. I have since added some edits for the need of the story, but her basic character has not been changed.

Naida was certain that they were lost. In fact, the dark-haired girl was certain that the group of six — seven, should one count her pixie Acquanetta, though most certainly didn't — wasn't just lost, but they were in fact _lost_. As in, they weren't just blindly fumbling around with an actual chance of making it back to Headmistress Faragonda's office, but completely and irreversibly lost and probably in dire need of either one, a map, or two, some sort of signpost to help them find their way back to the aged fairy's office before they got even further into the maze of corridors in Alfea's massive school blocks.

"Alfea is so big," she whispered to Acquanetta, whose short curly blue hair was bouncing quite exaggeratedly as the Pixe of Rivers flew around her head, eventually choosing to sit on the top of Naida's head and smooth out the blue and green frock she was wearing. "I wonder how I'll find my way around next year — it seems like it's going to be really hard with all the blocks here and there. I hope they give out maps during orientation or at least put up more directions on the wall, otherwise I'll be late to all my classes if this persists."

The group had taken a wrong turn at a corner about two minutes ago at Tiara's insistence that it would be the one to lead them out of the school block they were in and take them to the gates, but in fact what it had done was take them into another corridor... and another, and another, and _another_ , until the group realised that they wouldn't be able to get out when they reached a dead end. It had initially been a moment of panic, but the girls had agreed to backtrack until they found the exit, thought in Naida's admittedly not professional opinion, it wasn't going well in the slightest.

If they went on any further, Naida was very much certain that they would get completely lost and get stuck in Alfea together with no hope of ever getting out until perhaps the semester began and they would be found by some unlucky freshman fairy that was also lost in the halls, though hopefully _with_ a map of some sort to get them out of the maze of corridors in Alfea College for Fairies. Or maybe it would be a staff member that found them. Or maybe they wouldn't be found at all and they'd wander the halls forever and become one of the legends of the school — the ghosts of six girls. Yeah, like that would happen. Still, they had to get out of here somehow, and they'd need to stop wandering blindly.

The girl attempted to get the attention of the other five, though it wasn't going well with all of them trying to find their way back. They were more preoccupied with finding their way into another corridor and avoiding the dead ends that the halls led to eventually. The lack of signage was really irking the Androsi girl at this point, but the brunette pressed on in trying to get the attention of the group so that they could at least try to figure all of this out together instead of running around without thinking.

"Hey, 'cquanetta?" Naida called to her pixie, feeling the Pixie of Rivers lightly pat her head to acknowledge the call to her. "Can you help me try and get all of their attention onto me? Please?" she added, looking up at her hair, though she really couldn't see her bonded pixie through her curly brown hair that framed her face. She used the sweetest voice she could muster up, even though she knew that her pixie would gladly do what she was asking nonetheless. She clasped her hands together hopefully with a sweet smile.

"Oh, okay," Acquanetta said, pushing off her head and flying in front of the girl. The Pixie of Rivers flew closer and lightly bopped Naida's nose with a cheerful smile. "I'll get their attention, so you get ready what you want to say to them, m'kay, Nai?" She winked at the Androsi crown princess and flew off, her flowing blue hair an indication of where she currently was as she zipped around from Harmony to Tiara and then the other three girls, taking only a few seconds each time to fly over to the next.

"That's a pixie, isn't it?" the silver-haired girl noted as Acquanetta flew back to Naida and sat back on her head, the Pixie of Rivers swinging her little feet on the Androsi crown princess' head and bumping her head slightly with the back of her feet. "They don't usually leave the Pixie Village south of Alfea College unless they're bonded to a fairy."

"Not necessarily a fairy," Naida corrected on instinct. "Witches can bond to pixies as well, but they generally don't because pixies that have a suitable realm of influence to match what their needs emotionally and spiritually as most fairies and pixies can do. The bonding process is like finding a missing part of you, and the pixie is meant to guide you to locate what that missing part is and instruct you on how to put it all together again. Fairies are more open to receiving that help, so they bond more easily to pixies, while witches don't want that vulnerability, so they find it harder to accept it."

"I see, how intriguing," the girl mused, adjusting her dark shades. "And what about pixies that are bonded to places, then, like Concorda of the Alfea archives, Discorda of Cloud Tower, Athena of Red Fountain and Nifea of Pixie Village? How does that happen?" she inquired, looking quite intrigued to finally understand the pixies a little more from what little she had to know from her mother, at the very least. "Is it the magic of the places they are bonded to or perhaps were they bonded to the original founders of their respective locations and have since remained there?"

The girl raised a brow curiously — the other was very intent on understanding this. Not even her mother, who had been one of the first fairies to be a permanent ally of Pixie Village, had been this curious about the pixies. Thankfully, the relationship between Androsi royal family and the pixies had always been relatively close, so they had incredible amounts of information on their close friends. "It's the magic," she confirmed. "Or rather, the magical imprint that is left behind by inhabitants of the place. It's complicated magical theory, so I can't say much more on that," she said apologetically. "Sorry about that. But if we do get to go to Pixie Village, you can ask Queen Nifea herself — she's really nice and I'm more than sure she'll be willing to explain all of it to you."

"Hmm, perhaps," the silver-haired girl mused, looking thoughtful. "Thank you for what you have managed to explain so far, nonetheless..." She paused, frowning a bit as she looked at Naida thoughtfully like she was searching for something—

Oh. A name.

"My name is Naida," the Androsi princess offered up, "from Andros. My family has been a very close friend to all of pixie-kind for generations, so while I don't know everything about their kind, I do know a fair bit, and I'm sure I can get you some books on them, in the very least, if Queen Nifea can't or won't explain it to you." She gave the silver-haired girl a bright smile. "And this is my bonded pixie! Her name is Acquanetta and she's my best friend—" here she and Acquanetta high-fived again, "—she's the Pixie of Rivers, so I think I know what my future realm of magic will be. That's another benefit of bonding early — you know what you're associated with."

"Maybe if we have time after this," Tiara said, gazing curiously at the young pixie that was seated on top of Naida's mass of brown curls that she had inherited from her mother's side of the family. "I think my parents would really appreciate me getting a head start on becoming a fairy. Oh! What's it like? Um, to bond with a pixie, I mean. Mum and Digit tell me that it's an awesome feeling but despite mum's vocabulary and Digit's access to the trans-dimensional database of words, they couldn't come up with data that would be able to quantify it properly."

Well... my mother says that the bonding between a pixie and a person is different for everyone," Naida said, thinking back to what her mother had told her. "It's a really intimate process, and depending on what the connection between you is, it's a different experience. Either way, it's... it's a really great sensation. To be honest, I don't know how to explain it myself — the feeling of finding a pixie that clicks _perfectly_ with you and will be able to completely understand and help you when you need it..."

The feeling was indescribable. She honestly couldn't describe it, but she could remember it just like it was yesterday, no matter how long ago it was.

* * *

Ten-year-old Naida hid behind the loose, flowing skirts of her mother's beige and aqua dress as they walked into the grounds of Pixie Village, which had grown exponentially since Queen Aisha had last been there a decade ago — with pixies being everything short of completely immortal unless they were bonded to a fairy, their numbers were quick to rise whenever there was a small lull in the numbers of fairies that came around to find a pixie to bond with. They stopped short of the central palace belonging to Queen Nifea of Pixie Village, and as her mother knelt down to speak with the green-haired pixie queen, the girl took the chance to slip away, shying away from the multitude of large, sparkly eyes of the pixie residents.

It was her first time visiting with her mother, and while Naida had indeed been hoping to find a friend of her own in the village, the curious eyes of the many pixies that had come up to greet the Fairy of Waves excitedly had managed to scare her off. So, the young girl rushed towards the first place she could find that she knew she'd be comfortable at — water. Andros was famous for its oceans and seas, but the rivers and streams in the capital city Tides were nothing to scoff at either. When the girl arrived at the river that fed into the stream leading into Pixie Village, she plopped down on the dewy riverbank and took off her shoes, dipping her bare feet into the icy-cold water of the river.

It was very honestly nice and soothing, and the girl inched closer to the river to dip her legs knee-deep in the cool water. Andros never had very hot summers, but Magix was smack in the middle of its summer months, and the weather wasn't very enjoyable, to say the least. The dewy grass easy for Naida to scoot closer to the river, but it also made the grass very slippery, and with a slight movement that was just a little too much forward, the young girl squeaked in surprise and shock when she slipped directly off the grass and plopped directly into the water of the rapidly gushing river.

Despite being a relatively good swimmer, Naida kept her swimming to ocean shallows and the pool that led from the Royal Palace on Tides to the underwater palace of her cousin-once-removed, King Nereus. She'd never had to navigate her way through currents like these before, and the girl had yet to hit her growth spurt, which would have made things easier for her to grab onto the riverbank. She clawed her way to the surface only to be submerged again by the rushing water.

Frantically clawing her way up to the surface for some much-needed air — her mother had yet to teach her the magic of breathing underwater since she had yet to learn to transform — Naida broke the surface and greedily sucked in the air. The river seemed to have grown wilder, much to her dismay, which didn't seem possible, considering it seemed to now be rushing like those rapids one would find nearing a waterfall, which sent the girl into an increased sense of panic as she tried to swim to the riverbank, though it didn't seem to be working, for whatever reason.

And as soon as it came, the waters began to still, calming down from the violent rapids as the clear water slowed down to the point where it was almost a perfect mirror where Naida's splashing around wasn't disturbing the water surface. A small push from behind sped up the process as Naida finally put her swimming practice to use, guiding her down the river until they reached a shallower part of the water, shallow enough for the sunlight to hit the bottom of the riverbed and warm up the frigid temperature. Finally, after being tossed around by a stupid river, Naida clawed her way onto the bank and collapsed onto the grass, gasping for air.

"Oh! I'm so, so sorry for that!" a high-pitched voice blurted out hastily as a blue and green blur flew in front of Naida's face. "I didn't mean for that to happen! I was just looking around for a place to practice my magic and you dropped into the water and I freaked out and _that_ happened — oh, I'm so sorry!" Small hands patted all over Naida's face as the girl was trying to blink the water out of her eyes. "Oh, are you okay? I didn't hurt you, did I? Oh dear, please say you're alright!" the new voice fretted.

Naida blinked her blue eyes a few times before she was able to focus enough to see what the blue and green blur in front of her was — a small pixie, with short blue hair that frothed into white curls at the very tips, just like running water. The pixie was clad in a blue and green frock of shimmery, iridescent fabric, a nice match to the sea green eyes she had. "I'm okay," Naida coughed, pushing herself up and propping her up with her arm. She reached out one hand in front of her and opened her palm flat for the pixie to rest on, a tingling at the edge of her mind that she couldn't understand.

"Hi there," the pixie said, sounding somewhat sheepish as she landed on Naida's outstretched hand. "I'm Acquanetta, the Pixie of Rivers. I was out here practising my magic when you fell into the river. I'm so sorry that that happened — I'm still a bit young and I don't really know what I'm doing... oh..." Her eyes widened a little as she looked at Naida, her words trailing off. A tiny hand reached up to tap Naida's nose. "You're really bright and warm. It feels... nice to be around you." She flew upwards a little to press a hand on Naida's forehead. "And not because you're catching a cold either — which you aren't, by the way. It just feels... really nice."

Naida nodded, feeling the same warmth as the pixie flew closer to her. "Yeah... It's nice to be around you too, Acquanetta. I'm Naida, from Andros. I'm here on a visit with my mum." The feeling was amplified the closer the pixie got, and when she touched Naida's nose, a warm golden glow enveloped both of them. "Oh, wow! That's..." _Something else entirely._ The warmth that flooded them at the golden glow was welcoming and comforting, an internal feeling that made her feel something else as well, a gentle, reassuring thrum in the back of her head.

And that feeling clicked in her mind, the sensation of warmth, reassurance, an indescribable sensation of delight and joy at being close to the small pixie that had nearly drowned her by accident and had also saved her in the very end. "We just bonded," she said, almost dazed, but joyful. She had just bonded to her very own pixie, the one creature who would be able to help her find and better herself most of all. Few magical creatures could be complete without a companion like the pixies and she had just taken her first step.

"I have a feeling we're going to be really good friends in the future," Acquanetta said with a warm smile.

Naida couldn't have agreed more.

* * *

Blinking back to reality from her memory, Naida just smiled warmly as her pixie fluttered over to her shoulder. "It's really an indescribable feeling, honestly. You'll know it when you feel it," she said aloud to the others. "That kind of sensation is unique, and you'll never find it again with any other bonded companion you'll have. Each of them might be different, but they all correspond to the same part of you that's deep inside, and that's really what I think is the most interesting..." she trailed off as she looked around, ready to continue hunting down the path to Headmistress Faragonda's office once more. "We, uh, really should go to Pixie Village some time so we can see if you girls can bond to a pixie yourself."

"It sounds like it's going to be a fun trip," Harmony offered, managing a smaller, weaker smile, "I think I'd need to talk to my parents about it, but if they agree and yours do, I'm sure I'd be clear to visit the place with you and see if a pixie clicks well with me." She reached a hand up to scratch the back of her head as if she was searching for something else to say to avoid an awkward lull in the conversation. "Hey!" Harmony perked up, her eyes bright. There's a sign over there!"

Sure enough, when Naida turned to where the petite magenta-haired girl was looking, she found the embossed plaque on the wall, right under another sign pointing them towards the school courtyard. "Hey, yeah! Great eye, Harmony!" she praised, her blue eyes following the path of the sign down the hall, and if she squinted, she could see the outline of another sign in the distance. Now that she thought about it, the signs were actually a very similar pink hue to the walls and stood out only because they were raised up from the flat surface, and the words were written in a thin, cursive blue font. They certainly hadn't seen them the first time around, though perhaps they hadn't been looking hard enough.

"Oh, thank the Dragon!" Tiara exclaimed in relief as they found the sign, hurrying straight up to it, looking as if she was about to hug the sign in pure relief, though since it was several feet above her head, that plan was a bust. "Alright, I think I can actually get us back to Headmistress Faragonda's office from here," she announced after a few short moments of thought. "I promise, this time it's the real deal, and I'm not going to get us even more lost than before." She rapped her knuckles on the wall a few times. "Uh, knock on wood or whatever the term is. Let's go!"

As Tiara walked the group of six down the corridors further, taking the occasional turn down different paths, Naida let her thoughts wander. She had always been told how bonding with a pixie would be one of the largest and most important events of a fairy's life, as it paved the way for them to find their true selves. The Queen of Andros had said it was simply a myth, but legend said that should a fairy ever truly become one with themselves, they would find many a miracle and unlock an ability that none that had ever been able to before.

It was just a myth, of course, but Naida had always thought it would have been amazing to discover an entirely new power that no fairy had ever seen before. Her mother, after all, had been amongst the few to ever unlock specific transformations like the Believix transformations, the powerful Dragon's Flame-powered Bloomix and so on, and her mother and the rest of the Winx Club were indeed bonded to respective pixies. Naida wondered if she herself would be able to unlock those powers once she became a fairy proper.

But that was a thought for later, much, _much_ later, when she was in her final year of Alfea.

Naida made a mental note to get herself a map of Alfea as she followed after the group, knowing that she would definitely need it, or at least for her first year at Alfea. As she was thinking, she felt Acquanetta sharply pull on her hair, making her yelp out loud in surprise as she looked up to meet a brick wall, only inches in front of her nose. She almost jumped back, scratching the back of her head sheepishly as she looked at her bonded pixie. "Thanks 'cquanetta," she said sheepishly with a small smile. "What would I ever do without you, my friend?"

Acquanetta just smiled, patting her head where she had pulled on Naida's thick curly hair. "You'd be running face-first into walls, I think," the Pixie of Rivers said with a laugh. "Sorry about yanking on your head, Nai. I was worried I'd pull out a clump of your hair, but I forgot your family takes really good care of your hair. Though I have to ask, did you properly shampoo and condition after our last surfing session? I think I saw sand grains at your roots, and it's going to get all over your pillow tonight if you don't."

The dark-skinned girl manoeuvred herself after the other girls, keeping an eye out for more walls so she could avoid a repeat. "I'll take another shower later —maybe I didn't get it all out last time." She shuddered. "Ew, sand-pillow. Not a good night's sleep, for certain. Thanks for that, Acquanetta. You want anything special for dinner once we get home?"

"Ooh! The Linphean marigold tea?" the pixie requested eagerly. "You know how good that is with honey. Hey, watch out for the next wall in five paces!" she called out again.

Naida just smiled warmly at her pixie and oldest friend, swerving out of the way just in time to avoid smacking her forehead squarely on the corner of the wall, thankfully avoiding leaving behind a tell-tale red mark on her forehead. "Linphean marigold honey tea," she agreed with a chuckle. "Alright. I can't imagine what life would be like without you, 'cquanetta. Thanks, you're the best. I really don't know what I'd do without you. I'm so glad I met you."

"Yup, so am I." A tiny fist was held out for Naida to fist bump as Acquanetta flew beside her.

Naida returned the motion with a grin — typical Acquanetta, but she wouldn't trade her pixie for anything in the world.


	5. Maho

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Maho was submitted to me by Roxy Fan 4 Ever. I have since added some edits for the need of the story, but her basic character has not been changed.

Maho was really just asking herself how she got in this situation, with a group of five other girls that she didn't know in the slightest — one of which who looked equally as irked by being present as the silver-haired Crown Princess of Solaria — as they walked around the halls of the ever-prestigious Alfea College for Fairies in search of the office of the headmistress of the institution. She was going to have a real joy of a time navigating the maze of halls in the illustrious institution during her first few weeks in the school, wasn't she? A map hadn't been provided in her acceptance letter — a nondescript white envelope sealed with Alfea's emblem in blue and pink wax — so she could only hope one was provided during orientation. If they didn't, then she wondered how many freshmen fairies got lost during their first term to first semester.

But she digressed — that wasn't the point right now.

Maho never really understood the importance of friendship, no matter how heavily her parents stressed on about it. She wasn't like her parents in that regard — her mother had always been a social butterfly, and despite being raised in high society, the Fairy of the Shining Sun was always able to make friends no matter where she was. Her father, on the other hand, had been raised a commoner and had never had the same hurdles to surmount, even after he'd become the squire to the former Crown Prince of Eraklyon, now the king of both it and Domino.

She was not very popular. Well, alright, perhaps that was a lie. Maho had gone to public schooling during her younger years, and while she had made some friends then, not a single one of them stayed her friend when they asked her if they could come and hang out at her place. She would have let them, had her parents not made the specific request to not let anyone home with her. Now that she was older, she saw the security breach it posed, but she also now saw how shallow her 'friends' had definitely been back then. Even if she hadn't been publically advertising herself as the Crown Princess of Solaria, her father's last name and presence were enough of a hint that she was certain people only made friends with her because of her status.

It honestly probably wasn't much of a loss, now that she thought about it, but back then, it had really hurt nonetheless. Maho was grown up now, though, and she knew better than that. The silver-haired princess huffed inwardly to herself and took off her bespoke silver-framed sunglasses, perching them on the top of her head so that only the black lenses were really visible against her pale silver hair — inherited from her mother's side of the family — and her blue eyes surveyed the pink and blue hallways intently, holding back a frown at how impossible it was to get anywhere. Considering that the college constantly had trouble lured to it by students and alumni like her mother, it was a miracle that it was still standing.

Inwardly, Maho wondered if the trouble would get worse once she entered school and if she inherited her mother's questionable 'skills' in the complex art of potionology. If so, would it accidentally end up wrecked so it could be rebuilt in a more... intuitive manner than the maze of walls and halls? Of course, considering that the school had been under siege several times and had never been completely rebuilt from the ground up, she sincerely doubted it, but she did wonder if there was an enchantment on the famed buildings that prevented them from suffering more damage than they rightfully should have.

Of course, now that they had seen the practically invisible signage, Tiara had once more taken the lead to get them back to Headmistress Faragonda's office. Maho would say that the corridor was looking familiar — it wouldn't be a _lie_ , per se, considering that all the halls looked near identical — but it no longer carried the same meaning. As they walked, she silently observed the interactions of the girls, rather analytically making notes and filing them away into her head for later use regarding interactions with them.

Harmony and Tiara, both very casual, were naive, and though Harmony seemed a bit quick to action, they were otherwise unremarkable. Naida primarily kept chatting with her pixie Acquanetta, and while she didn't actively talk to everyone, she was open to it, considering her attempts at speaking with everyone else. The girl with the dark blue hair kept to herself, though unlike the black-clad strawberry blonde — Maho would get to _her_ later — she seemed to be uncomfortable in crowds more than actively dislike the place and people. Now, the blonde, she was a piece of work to cringe at. The harsh black made her look sallow, and the hooded jacket was simply inappropriate for anything other than curling up at home. And honestly, a black jacket in the humid summer weather? She had no common sense, Maho swore.

Regardless of that, she cleared her throat as they continued to walk, drawing their attention to her. "Hello," she greeted, her smooth voice cultured, confident and poised, just like her mother had taught her to from childhood. "I am the Crown Princess Maho of planet Solaria." Title, name, realm, tick, tick, tick. Was she missing anything? Oh, yes — the customary 'it's nice to meet you blab', as her mother referred to it as. Queen Stella Solaria didn't look very highly on the formalities of royal life, though she knew very well how necessary they were. It was because of how she'd spent her teenage years, according to the blonde queen. "It has been lovely meeting you all so far." Her go-to, of course. Polite and without anything particular in details so she could effortlessly regurgitate it again and again.

"Y-you're Aunt Stella's daughter, right?" the dark blue-haired girl said softly, clutching the flower with the blue-tipped petals she'd brought along with her. She shifted in her low-heeled pink pumps, her matching pink beret shifting slightly to sit at an angle on top of her head, already set rather askew from the beginning. She shyly peeked out of the curtain of dark hair and twirled the end of one of her long dark hair around a slender tanned finger, fidgetting with it slightly in a display of poorly veiled anxiety.

Maho felt a good bit envious of the natural shade of skin — no artificial tan was ever that flawless, after all. Her own pale skin tone and light hair didn't clash _too_ much, thankfully, but unlike her mother's golden hair colour and warm complexion, her silver hair and blue eyes gave her a colder feel, making her more ethereal and ghostly than vibrant and attention-grabbing. Still, she hated the midday sun of Solaria, which was a surefire way to tan her skin if she did go out without her jacket, so it was little wonder she was as pale as she was. Maho took good care of herself, though, so her skin colour was pale, yes, but not the almost sallow and sickly pale of the girl in black.

The girls kept walking as Tiara continued tracking their path — Maho honestly doubted that the brunette really knew her way as well as she did, but she wouldn't call the girl out just yet, either way. Naida lingered behind, closer to her like the darker-skinned brunette didn't want her to lag behind and eventually get lost herself within the complex of halls — again. Getting the school demolished and rebuilt with proper signage was certainly looking quite appealing to her now, but alas, she wouldn't be able to do it herself.

"I love the way your boots look on you," Naida mentioned suddenly. "Those knee-highs are wicked. And they complement your pale skin really nicely. Where'd you get them? Are they designer or something, because they look like they fit you really great, you know, and I don't think I've ever seen boots like those from Andros' local Soluna boutique outlet. I mean, that white wouldn't fit me, really, but I'd love to get them in dark blue or even a lighter blue — that would look so good."

Maho glanced down at her white boots, that, despite having been part of her wardrobe daily since she was about six, still looked brand new. "Oh, these old things?" she asked herself aloud, the heeled white boots clicking rhythmically on the floors of Alfea's corridors. They were a part of her wardrobe, such an essential part that it had even worked its way into her fairy form in a manner that seemed almost inexplicable. In fact, the only time her knee-highs weren't on her was when she had just woken up and was going through her daily routine before setting out. Well, that, and her formal wear. Knee-high heeled boots were not appropriate for formal events. "They were a gift from someone I... used to know."

It was a vague statement, but yes, it seemed to hold even after a full decade. She had barely known the giver of the gift in the first place, but there was something in her head that made the woman who had given her them a warm, familiar figure in the back of her head, yet despite going through every single photo album and family-related portraiture, she couldn't find the woman at all. It had been quite a mystery for a good decade.

"What happened?" Naida suddenly asked, snapping Maho out of her musings and making her pay attention to the darker-skinned girl.

"Hm? And what do you mean by that, Naida?" the silver-haired girl inquired, still walking straight, though her blue eyes darted to the side where Naida was walking by her, paying attention to the other princess while not taking her focus off ensuring that Tiara didn't take them down another random path and invalidate all of their efforts in searching for the headmistress' office.

Naida shrugged a little, running a hand through her thick mop of curly dark brown hair and pushed the voluminous curls behind her shoulders and clearing her shoulder for her pixie to sit on. "Oh, well, you said someone you 'used to know'," she said, putting the statement in air quotes, motioning with her fingers for emphasis — thankfully, she didn't seem to be interested in picking at Maho's brief moment of consideration in selecting her words. Her own mother would have chewed her out for doing that in public, but then again, this wasn't public, yes? "You know what it implies, right?"

Maho just chuckled, dropping her sunglasses over her blue eyes, the accessory specifically enchanted to give her clear vision even when she was indoors. It was a striking fashion statement and a safety precaution just in case someone tried something. "I'm aware. It's a..." she pursed her lips together as she contemplated her words, "... a complicated issue, you could say. It's complicated. Let's just leave it at that, hmm?" She smiled at the Androsi princess as she looked forward, just in time for Harmony to yank Tiara back from almost walking into a wall.

"Alright," Naida relented. "But I do mean it, you know. Those boots are _killer_ on you. You rock white." With a smile and thumbs-up, she hurried forward to try and get Tiara to lead them back on track and find the right path back to the office.

Maho paused, hearing those words again, worded differently and in another voice, recalling what had happened a full decade ago.

* * *

Six-year-old Maho frowned irritably as her mother lead her by the hand down the Solarian royal starship, leading them from the landing pad of the Zenithian palace courtyard towards the Zenithian grand palace. "Do I have to come with you, mother?" she asked, putting on her best set of puppy dog eyes for her mother, the big sapphire blue eyes watery as the young girl, almost seven, used the exact same trick she and her mother usually used on her father. Of course, unlike her father, who would easily cave to her demands, her mother had practised the 'art' of pleading looks since her childhood, and of course, was immune to such pleading puppy dog eyes.

However, Queen Stella chose to give in, just this once. The blonde Fairy of the Shining Sun lowered herself down just a little to look down at her daughter mildly easier, some of her long blonde hair tied back into an elegant bun and the rest cascading down her back in loose golden waves, matching with the shimmery golden fabric of her dress. "This one time, I'll let you slip," she answered, her warm brown eyes sparkling in mirth. "I'll have to tell Auntie Tecna that you didn't want to see her because you'd be stuck in a stuffy trade meeting, but I think she'll understand if you're not coming along. Her own little Tiara is being fussy too, or so she told me." With a smile, the queen smoothed Maho's waist-length silver hair back and straightened the golden tiara on her crown. "Stay close to the palace building, and don't leave the main wing, okay?"

With a gentle pat to the head, she stood up and swept away, leaving Maho under the supervision of the two Solar Guards that she really barely knew anything of except that they were big, muscular and very tanned, and both had a secret soft spot for the colour baby pink and loved glitter. She couldn't fault her mother for being eager to see her friend again, of course. The Crown Princess was young, but even she knew that the old king of Zenith had recently just passed away without a biological heir to the throne, and the Zenithian court had, in unison, agreed that the monarch's throne should be passed down to the Fairy of Technology herself for her services in saving the crown and the entirety of the Magix Dimension many times over. It was a game-changer and while this visit was framed as a political one, between two monarchs of the same general system, this was more of a social call between friends than anything else more insidious.

As her mother's golden form disappeared down the corridor and the clicking of her stiletto heels faded away, Maho slowly inched towards the front of the wing, just out of the sight of the two Solar Guards, who were honestly more preoccupied with discussing the most recent episode of some children's cartoon than actually guarding. She crept through the chilly place, warmed with heating devices that occasionally had a blind spot that left the marble finish of the floors as chilly as ice until she approached an open door that led outside. It was the dead of winter in Zenith — it almost always was, honestly, but it never snowed unless it was seasonal and for that, Maho was glad as she headed into the palace courtyard, wearing only a dress of blue silk hemmed with white faux fur and blue slippers.

In the middle of the courtyard was a grand fountain, still spouting water in elaborate patterns despite the freezing weather. That was far from being the surprising thing that had attracted her attention, though — any magic wielder could charm water, of course, be they fairy, witch, or wizard. No, the attention-grabber was the two adults that stood in front of the fountain, both looking so starkly different and simultaneously so out of place in the modernist Zenithian architecture that it was absurd. Yet, one of them looked so natural in the metallic grey surroundings of the palace that it was difficult to imagine them in any other place.

Said adult was male, quite tall — in fact, taller than most of the six-foot guards employed by Solaria's royal family. He was clad head to toe in platinum armour, with a flowing cape that resembled liquid metal, flapping behind him in the chilly winds that eternally swept Zenith. A metal helmet encased his head, though what could be seen of him — his lower face — revealed an impatient scowl and a look of consternation and frustration, likely regarding the woman he was currently engaged in a conversation with.

The other adult, of course, was said lady, seemingly made entirely out of golden light. Her sunshine-hued hair was long and swept all the way to the ground, even trailing on it before dissolving into sparkling dust. She was garbed in a classical Solarian dress from several generations ago, fitted at the top and flowing at the skirt, with a low neckline that would have spelt disaster in the cold Zenithian weather. Her dress flowed to the floor, also dissolving into sparkles at the end, the colour of Solaria's twin suns and equally as bright.

"Hush, hush, Machinosus," the woman chided, reaching out her hand and sparks leaving her glowing fingertips to shape into a handheld fan, which she used to fan herself. Why she would need the cool air when she was already in freezing weather, Maho couldn't fathom in the slightest, but she didn't question it. The wind blew her long sunshine hair back like a cape. "Keep your voice down, dear. You wouldn't want one of the girls finding us, now would you?" Her voice was also sunshine-warm, calm and soothing even as she scolded the man opposite her.

The man, Machinosus, pinned her with a glare, looking unimpressed as he frowned, grumbling, "That is exactly the problem here, Lucerna. What with you and your sun child coming here to my territory, our power, though weakened without Draco, is still magnified. We are _forbidden_ from interacting with the girls until Draco is roused from his slumber once more, remember? If we are found, we will have to be punished by the laws of Magix itself, and should Draco learn that we have 'cheated' his system, he will be most displeased with us."

Lucerna frowned, her delicate features pinched into a haughty-looking expression of disdain. "Worry not about that, dear. All we have to do is to simply keep them silent if they do stumble across us. Now, speaking of Draco, what has happened to the Creator? What of Alitura and Hydrus? And Camena?" Her brow furrowed, and she wrinkled her nose, a rather ugly expression for her otherwise beautiful face. "How has the poor dear been dealing since Draco's disappearance?"

Machinosus just grunted, reaching up and removing his helmet to reveal his silver hair and eyes. "There has not been much news from Camena since we lost contact with Draco. She cannot locate him either, and neither can Alitura. None of them can spare the additional time to do so now, especially since we have pinned down the location of the wielders. The Powers are set to reawaken, and while Draco is an important component, it cannot be if the girls are not present for it. Now, what are we to do without the presence of the Creator— by Draco Almighty, look behind you, you daft woman! That's your sun girl!"

With a loud, fearful gasp, Maho realised that she had been seen, and swallowing down her fear, she turned tail and tried to run and flee back to the safety of the Zenithian grand palace. She didn't get too far before she was stopped, however — a cloud of golden dust was blown in front of her, reforming into Lucerna's brightly glowing form, and she was barely able to slow herself to a stop before she crashed into the golden woman. Despite that, she still tried to stumble back.

Lucerna held her close, gently hushing her and soothing her. "Oh, you poor thing," she said, 'tsk'ing like Maho's mother would often do when seeing an off-putting piece of clothing. "In this weather and only wearing those simple flats? That won't do." A warm golden glow was sent from her hands to Maho's feet and the blue slippers were replaced by warm, knee-high white boots that clung to Maho's small form. "Much better, don't you think? Those boots look killer on you," she said to the girl with a hint of pride in her tone. "Now, I have a very simple task for you, my dear. Don't tell anyone that you've seen us, alright? When you meet the others, get them together. This is important, very important, so you _must_ remember it, okay?"

Despite being very confused, the silver-haired princess nodded slowly, looking up to the regal-looking duo. She blinked once, Lucerna's light becoming overwhelmingly bright, but when she reopened her eyes, both were gone, not even footprints left behind, and yet her slippers were now the warm boots conjured up by Lucerna's warm golden magic. It hadn't been a dream. Blinking a few more times to ensure that the two adults were really gone and it wasn't simply her imagination, Maho slowly made her way back inside, now silently wishing she had gone with her mother. Still, that Lucerna did seem familiar...

Resolving to do more reading on her own, the silver-haired girl made her way inside, not knowing that she had just set her path for the future into motion.

* * *

"It was just someone I used to know. Insignificant, really," Maho repeated to herself, despite knowing that the statement was wrong. She had spent the last few years of her life researching the names and coming up empty-handed. She recalled Lucerna's other words to her: _when you meet the others, get them together._ Even after a decade, she still didn't know who those others were, but something in the back of her mind told her that she would, oh-so-very soon. She didn't know why, but she felt it, deep within her soul, that Lucerna's words would be important to her for all of her life. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing something stupidly obvious, and she knew that when she did figure it out, she would feel like a fool.

She honestly didn't know whether it was her fault or not at this point, but it didn't matter, she told herself. She would find out eventually, by her own machinations or by someone else's, and the silver-haired girl would honestly prefer if it was of her own efforts that the mystery was finally unravelled — she had spent far too much time on it for all of her efforts to go to waste now. Maho exhaled slowly as she widened her stride to catch up with the other girls before they all got lost again. Suddenly, she felt like she was looking forward to coming to Alfea. With the extensive library, she could surely figure something out, right? Maybe it wouldn't be that bad... as long as she got a map first.


	6. Lilliana

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Lilliana and Styl were submitted to me by XxNevousGirlxX. I have since added some edits for the need of the story, but their basic character has not been changed.

Lilliana clutched the five-petalled flower she'd brought from home tighter to her, a piece of home and familiarity in the unfamiliar planet of Magix and the unfamiliar pink and blue hallways of Alfea College for Fairies. She'd cross-bred the flower for a few months, and with the help of her mother, had finally been able to make the hybrid plant a reality when both parent plants lived in completely different environments and had different needs to survive. Linphea, as a nature-based planet, had optimal conditions for flora and fauna to breed, mutate, and evolve, but even then there were difficult conditions to mesh. Her mother's magic had finally made it possible to breed a desert-dweller and an ocean plant together.

She honestly didn't know where she had gotten the idea to bring it along with her for this trip, but she had just felt like bringing along the hibiscus-like flower for some reason. The blue-tinted petals of the blossom drooped a little as she walked down the hall with the other girls, the flower aligned a little with her mood due to her emerging magic that her mother was trying to bring out to the surface. She was set to attend school the next year, even though her mother had homeschooled her ever since she was at the age to be going to prep school.

Absently, the dark blue-haired girl rubbed her wrist where her charm bracelet hung, and she looked down at it to see the familiar six flower charms hanging on a golden vine chain, spaced evenly from each other. The floral charms were detailed, looking vibrant and yet not clashing at all despite the variety of bright colours that the charms were painted in, each seeming to resonate effortlessly with each other. One of the six charms was a soft pink lily with green leaves around it in a wreath-like halo, the next a green anemone-like plant with neon blue tips and bands around it. Then was a luminous golden yellow daffodil, with a shiny gleam to the petals like there was glitter on it, followed by a silverish-grey moonflower with sharp, almost pixellated edges. Finally was a vibrant purple, red and white dahlia, native to Melody with red tipped leaves, bordered by a simple, fiery red hibiscus that, in comparison to all the others, was quite plain.

On the back of each of the charms were inscriptions in either gold or silver, each in a different font that seemed to convey in and of itself a personality. The back of the lily was inscribed with silver writing in slender cursive letters, reading _Alitura_ ; the anemone was inscribed with gold letters in a very loose and flowing font, spelling out _Hydrus_. The daffodil was inscribed with silver writing as well, a dainty, curved font that was written tightly together, reading _Lucerna_ , while the moonflower was inscribed with golden, blocky lettering that read _Machinosus_. On the dahlia was silver writing that had sharp curves and ends, reading _Camena;_ the hibiscus was inscribed with the Latin word for 'dragon', _Draco_ on the back in simple, understated golden writing.

Lilliana had worn the floral charm bracelet ever since she could remember, which was quite odd because her mother and father couldn't recall ever buying it for her, and none of her relatives had purchased it for her as a gift. She could only assume it had been an anonymous gift from someone, and as it had been vetted by her mother's magic to be harmless, she had worn it. Certainly, its appearance had been kind of suspect, but it was a harmless gift in every aspect, just cosmetic, though she'd never actually taken it off after putting it on.

It was like the golden vine chain was glued to her skin.

The dark blue-haired girl sighed softly as she ran a hand through her deeply-coloured locks, her pastel blue bangs — inherited from her mother's natural blonde bangs — falling over one of her green eyes, startling her with the sudden obscuring on her vision. It made her stumble forward on her pumps and the slender Linphean artist crashed right into the petite form of Harmony right in front of her, which sent the shorter girl tumbling forwards with a yelp before Tiara caught her.

"What in the world? Hey, watch it!" the magenta-haired girl spluttered, just mere centimetres away from making her face meet the polished floor of Alfea's hallways. Thanks to Tiara, she managed to slowly get back up on her feet, looking kind of disgruntled as she brushed herself off, even though she hadn't actually fallen down.

"O-oh! I'm so sorry!" Lilliana stammered through her apology, a dark flush rising up to her cheeks in embarrassment. Her hair fell over her face, like a protective curtain to hide her from the outside world. "I-I wasn't paying attention and I just lost my balance and I'm so sorry about that—" Her eyes widened in alarm as Harmony's hand clamped over her mouth, the petite girl having pushed herself up onto the tips of her toes to even reach the Linphean, who was almost two heads taller than the Melodese girl.

"Hey, Flower Girl," Harmony interrupted, pinning her with a firm navy gaze despite being much shorter than her. "You can chill out a little. I'm not going to hurt you. You've got to stop apologising so much for things like this, jeez! I get it, it's just an accident. Calm down, you're not in any sort of trouble, I promise. Why are you so jumpy?"

Lilliana felt her face burn even hotter in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry," she apologised with a slight bow of the head. "It's just that I usually lose my focus on things when I'm thinking while walking and this ends up happening more often than not." _Because I'm also thinking about someone,_ her mind added almost mockingly, and Lilliana felt her eyes widen a little more behind her curtain of hair in embarrassment at the thought. _Well_ , she defended herself, _Styl is a very good friend, who's just coincidentally also really handsome and talented and..._ Lilliana realised that she had been staring out into space and completely tuning out everyone else. "I'm sorry," she apologised yet again before Harmony cut her off once more.

"Jeez! Apologise much, Flower Girl?" the petite girl said, exasperation clear in her voice. "We get it, you're sorry, you're well-mannered, whatever else it is. Now, calling you Flower Girl is nice and all, but how about you introduce yourself so I can call you by your name instead?"

Lilliana opened her mouth to spout off another apology on instinct but immediately caught herself as she realised she was about to say 'I'm sorry' for the umpteenth time that day, and quickly changed gears so as to not irk Harmony further. "Um, my name is Lilliana," she said softly. "I'm from Linphea... it's nice to meet all of you." Feeling her blush receded a little, she reached a hand up and brushed her long dark blue hair back and out of the way, tucking strands of her pastel bangs behind her ears.

"Aunt Flora's daughter," Tiara piped up saying, and Lilliana nodded.

"Linphea, hmm, isn't your realm in the middle of a trade dispute with the realm of Amity?" Maho mused. "That's another blow to their kingdom after the engagement between King Lier Amity and Duchess Tressa Licorisa, formerly ex-queen of Caltros was announced."

"What's the big issue around that anyway?" Naida asked, sounding quite confused.

"Duchess Licorisa has a bad reputation around her home planet," Maho elaborated. "She's well-known to be a rude, entitled noble, the very stereotype of a snob. No one likes her — it's why she's a duchess rather than still queen of Caltros. Rumour has it that the king, Andrei Caltros, divorced her because he couldn't stand her. Lucky for their twin children, but unfortunate for the Crown heir to Amity's throne, since that woman will reputably do everything to be signed as Queen Regnant instead of Queen Consort."

That kind of woman was going to be Styl's stepmother? Lilliana felt her eyes widen in surprise. What a terrible woman!

* * *

Twelve-year-old Lilliana had been painting in the art room of the Lisandre Duchy Palace when a maid poked her head into the room, telling her that there was a visitor waiting for her in the drawing room. Hastily, the girl packed away her art supplies to put onto the table and put her canvas under a cloth to protect it from anything from the outside due to the open window in the room. Gathering the skirts of her pink and mint green frock, she went running down the halls despite all of her mother's kind but stern warnings to not run inside unless it was an emergency.

In the girl's head, it _was_ an emergency. She didn't have many friends and the only one that could ever afford to come and visit her without prior planning like this could only be one person. She reached the drawing room, the room the duke and his family used to entertain visitors and guests, and burst open through the double doors despite the total lack of decorum it presented. "Styl!" she exclaimed as she rushed into the room, where her best friend was sitting in a plush armchair by the fireplace.

"Lils!" the twelve-year-old boy exclaimed, sitting straight up and immediately abandoning the cup of tea he had been holding to the side table. The brunette smiled as he jumped off his chair and let the Linphean girl barrel into him and hug him tightly. "How have you been?" he asked with a warm smile, his amber eyes bright, though Lilliana noticed that his smile didn't really reach his eyes. "It's so good to see you again. I haven't been able to come over since last month because it's been busy with my lessons and all, sorry."

Lilliana just shook her head. "It's okay," she said, brushing off his apology easily — it was always busy with her own lessons, and she couldn't imagine how much more it would be for the Crown Prince of the kingdom of Amity. The girl finally pulled back, rocking back and forth on her heels a little. "I've been great, the same old as usual... Styl, where are your guards?" she asked, noticing that the prince was indeed alone, and his usual personal team of knights, formed by his father, was not present in the room.

"They... well, it's complicated," the boy blurted out. He frowned, looking to down to the ground as his eyes saddened. "Y-you know how my mother died a few years ago, right?" he said, blinking as he tried to not tear up at the mention, wiping at the corner of his eyes, jerking at Lilliana's heartstrings at the sight of her best friend tearing up. "I don't know what to do, Lils. Dad is going to forcefully send me off to Red Fountain and he's telling me that when I come back from Magix to Amity, he's going to marry this Duchess Tressa lady from Caltros." He shook his head violently, sending his unruly and rather shaggy brown hair flying a little.

"Styl..." Lilliana said softly, reaching out to take her friend's hands in her own in an attempt to offer him some form of comfort. "I'm so sorry to hear that..." She had never personally met the deceased Queen Arianna, but her parents had, and they'd told her all about how kind and loving the woman had been. King Lier had reportedly been very much in love with her, so it was surprising how quickly he had chosen to remarry already, barely four years after his wife had died. She'd heard from some gossip from the maids that he'd promised the queen he wouldn't remarry until their son was eighteen, and sure enough, the timelines lined up. "There's nothing I can do to help, can I?"

Styl just shook his head, reaffirming Lilliana's thoughts.

Lilliana sighed quietly, gently squeezing his hand, still trying to give him some comfort. "When are you leaving?" she asked him. Red Fountain did have a prep program, but most aspiring Specialists usually went to other prep schools instead before directly enrolling in Red Fountain's main program when they were of age and capable of withstanding the physical demands of the Specialist course. That was what her father said, at least, and he had been enrolled in the Red Fountain prep program before he took a year off at the end to pursue his own interests.

Absently, the dark-haired girl played with the charms dangling from her bracelet, an echo resonating faintly in her mind, telling her, in a gentle woman's voice, to 'find the other five', and to 'find the dragon'. It snapped her out of it immediately, and Lilliana instead clasped her hands in front of her as she tried to clear away the foreign thoughts as she focused on how to cheer Styl up. With a vague idea taking form in her mind, she tried to find it in herself to call out to her friend. "Styl?" she said softly to get his attention. "Can you come with me?" She gently pulled on his hand to reaffirm the idea that she wanted him to follow her as she headed out the door.

The brunette boy had an expression between confusion, bemusement and sorrow, and walked after her. They walked into the shiny hallways of the grand building, led by Lilliana towards the left wing before exiting out of the building proper and into the lush gardens tended to by a team of gardeners that her mother had hand-picked to maintain the numerous herbs, flowers and vegetables that the palace used, as well as sold to the closest city at times. The grand duchess had her own personal garden, though; tucked far away into a corner and covered with flowers.

Lilliana guided Styl towards that corner of the gardens and searched among the almost overgrown area for what she was looking for. After some time, she finally picked out a soft, pastel red bloom, with long, feather-like petals that curled in towards each other, perched on a deep green stem that had heart-shaped leaves supporting the base of the blossom. Turning back to Styl, she firmly pressed the flower, stalk and all, into his hand. "This is an Amity Blomo," she explained to him as they stood there, the gentle fragrances of all the different flowers permeating the air. "It's called that not because it's related to your home, but because its scent brings about amity and calm to one's heart and mind."

She watched as Styl closed his eyes and his shoulders slumped downwards, the boy clearly experiencing the soothing effects of the magical blossom. The feathery petals of the Amity Bloom slowly opened itself as it released its scent into the air, sending a calming wave throughout the entire stretch of gardens. If she squinted, she could also see the pastel pink pollen of the Amity Bloom drifting lazily in the air. It regrew only from its roots or from fresh seeds and pollen, so she wasn't worried about the fragile flower growing in the other gardens as weeds.

"Thanks, Lils," Styl said with a sigh as he opened his warm amber eyes. "I needed that." He smiled warmly at her, and Lilliana felt her heart melt at her friend's bright, warm smile again. "And... Lils, there's something I need to tell you." His voice had gone from soothed and level to serious and stern, and that alarmed the girl when she heard it. The Amity Bloom calmed emotions, but this was clearly not an emotional reaction. Even the scent of the flower couldn't calm her racing heart now.

"W-what is it, Styl?" Lilliana asked, her green eyes widening slightly as she looked at her best friend.

"Dad's enrolled me in the Red Fountain prep program," Styl told her with a melancholy expression. "I won't be back from Magix until then since my dad doesn't want me getting 'distracted from my Specialist studies'." The air quotes in his statement were even audible to anyone who wasn't actively listening for them, a rarity for the gentle and warm boy. "I don't... I don't want to be a Specialist," he admitted. "I don't want to fight. I just want to do what I have to, even if that means I stay in Amity and get a tutor. But it's the only way to delay dad's remarriage, and I'm sure I can find a way to stop it with the six years I have before I graduate."

The girl felt her shoulders slump at the admission. Styl was one of the best friends she had and because of her mostly sheltered life, he was one of her only friends. They'd only met because his father had come to forge a better trade relationship, and because of the close proximity of their homeworlds, they'd become close friends as well. "I-I see... well, at least I'll see you in three years when I eventually go to Alfea... right?" She fidgeted with her charm bracelet again as well as playing with the end of her loosely braided dark blue hair.

Styl nodded, looking away. "Yeah. But hey, when you get into Alfea, give me a call?" he said hopefully. "We can meet up in Magix City and catch up then?"

Lilliana nodded hopefully, giving him a soft, comforting smile regardless of what she felt. "Yeah," she said softly. "I promise, we'll meet again then." She held out her left hand, pinkie finger out. It was childish, but it gave her reassurance, especially when Styl hooked his pinkie with hers. She'd see him again when she entered school. She didn't renege on her promises.

* * *

"Hey, Flower Girl, stop daydreaming."

Lilliana snapped back to the present and saw Harmony snapping her fingers in front of her face. The petite girl was up on her tiptoes to do so since Lilliana was much taller than her, but of course, it worked, as it had managed to get her attention. The dark blue-haired girl blushed in embarrassment at spacing out again and bowed her head in apology. "I'm sorry Harmony," she said softly, cringing when the smaller girl pinned her with a look that was plainly chastising her for the apology. "Um, let's get going."

Harmony grabbed her wrist and pulled her along as they rushed to catch up with the other girls. Thankfully, they hadn't ended up falling too much behind, as the other girls had slowed down to wait for them when they noticed Lilliana and Harmony lagging behind. The group of six was quickly able to regroup, and before long, they arrived at the office of Headmistress Faragonda. Despite the dampened sound due to the door being shut, the girls could hear a conversation between the occupants inside.

Harmony went to open the door, but Maho shot her a reprimanding glare. "What?" the magenta-haired girl protested in a quiet voice, looking rather irritated at the scolding glare from the older of the two girls. "Do you want me to knock or something?"

If Maho hadn't been as refined as she was, Lilliana supposed she would have introduced her hand to her forehead. Her sunglasses were also worn normally again, and the darkened lenses hid her eyes, so it was difficult to tell if she was rolling her eyes. Perhaps that was the point of wearing her sunglasses indoors — to hide her expressions when she was irritated. It was questionable how effective that was — Lilliana's household had a ban on sunglasses once they were inside, and she had learned that it was common courtesy.

"For goodness sake, does your tutor not teach you about common courtesy?" Maho asked, sounding rather exasperated. "Yes. Knock on the door to announce your presence. You don't know if they're talking about things that you aren't allowed to listen to."

"If we're not allowed to, then they'd stop talking as soon as we opened the door," Tiara pointed out. "I can't hear what they're talking about right now, though, but it sounds kind of heated. Maybe you two can sort of quiet down and we can listen to what's going on?"

Maho looked annoyed but as the conversation rose, her interest seemed to be piqued and she fell silent, as did Harmony. All six of the girls moved towards the door, listening near the hinges to hear what was being talked about inside the room, arranging themselves in a manner so that all of them could be given space to stand without having to press their ears against the door itself and allow them a chance to quickly jump back in case the door was thrown open later on.

Lilliana picked up on the conversation right as someone began to speak, and she focused in on that to try and see what was going on. Normally, she wasn't the kind of person to eavesdrop on someone's conversation, but some part of her was burning with curiosity, and it told her to listen in, that it would be immensely important for her to know this. She obliged and listened in.

"Wait, Bloom, you don't mean to say—" a voice, one Lilliana vaguely identified as Queen Aisha of Andros, spoke up, only to fall silent.

"Girls. I gave you part of the Dragon's Flame. And when you had your children, you passed that bit of flame down to them, as did I to Raven. The Dragon Powers are returning because of this — they sense that the Flame has been broken up. They're going to manifest themselves in the girls when their magic does. The Dragon's Flame will lead them to activate." Queen Bloom paused in her statement. "Our girls are going to be harbouring some of the most powerful sources of magic in the entire Magix Dimension."

The six girls fell silent at this, each of them thoroughly stunned at the information that had suddenly been thrust upon them, the total chaos of the room inside just going unheard as each peeled away from the door and stood away.

Lilliana couldn't say anything — literally could not say anything. Words couldn't get themselves out even though her thoughts were running at almost the speed of sound. One of the most powerful sources of magic in the dimension had been passed down to her? What were the Dragon Powers? Did it have anything to do with the strange voice she heard? What did this mean?!

"What does that even mean?" The question came from the last of the girls, presumably Raven, who had been the first to move away from the door. She shook her head. "What?"


	7. The Fun Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A left-over note from the original version of the story:
> 
> Raven, Tiara and Harmony are fourteen. Maho is sixteen. Lilliana and Naida are both fifteen.

"Our girls are going to be harbouring some of the most powerful sources of magic in the entire Magix Dimension."

As the headmistress' office began to practically explode into chaos from the statement, Raven felt something inside of her just snap, and her anger began to boil up and over. No, no, no, no, _no_! Was stealing her life and her parents from her not enough for the woman? Did she have to do this too, corralling her life and forcing her to do this? No doubt the woman wanted to make her do everything the redheaded queen had done in her own youth too, and that just made her anger rise even more. The strawberry blonde shook her head as she backed up from the door, her blue eyes blazing in anger.

"What does that even mean?" she spat, disbelief in her voice. She just shook her head, seething in anger, snarling, "What?" She took another step back, drawing in a sharp breath through grit teeth, her hands balling into fists so tightly that her short nails were digging into her palm with enough force to leave indents later on. _She... damn it! Can't she just let me go? She's ruined my life enough as it is!_ Biting back a harsh snarl of anger, Raven felt herself literally trembling, masked only by her long sleeves and pants, though her pale, shaking hands were all too visible against the dark fabric of her hooded jacket. "No!" she suddenly burst out. "I don't want this! I refuse to accept this! _She can't force me into this!_ "

And she took off, her footsteps pounding in her head as she made a mad dash down the hall, wanting to be anywhere but Alfea right now. She could hear the blood pumping through her veins, a steady thumping sound beating inside of her head. All she wanted was for her life to go back to normal. Was that too much to ask? The royal couple had abandoned her when she was an infant and a decade later had come to 'reclaim' her like she was some lost baggage, and in the process, had caused her parents — her _real_ parents, screw what those two had to say — to pass away. They'd stolen her family from her, taken her home, and now were intending to take her future as well.

Raven wasn't having it. Not now, not ever. She refused to bow to their will!

The black-clad girl sprinted down the hallways, randomly turning corners and paying no attention to the signs that showed her where she was going. Miraculously, that strategy didn't land her in an inescapable maze of hallways but let her out of the school building. Her hurried pace slowed to a stop as she reached the entrance, and she looked up at the pink and blue gates of the famed college for fairies. Her hands were still shaking, she faintly realised as she looked down at her hands again — from anger or something else, she didn't know. "Draco," she whispered, not even realising the words coming from her, "please help me..."

_You will understand soon._

The intrusive thought made her blue eyes widened, and it then happened to Raven that she had sworn upon an unfamiliar name. Magix usually cursed upon the name of the Great Dragon — there were some religions that said otherwise, but it was the most commonly accepted belief that the Great Dragon created the Dimension, and other religions were usually called heretics or insane for believing that wasn't the truth. Still, she'd never heard of a deity that went by the name of Draco, not even with her parents, who had been liberal but had never talked about another deity in front of her. Where had that name come from?

She bit down on the inside of her cheek. She swore that she was going insane at this point, driven to the brink of madness by the prospect of the Dominese queen forcing her to do as the redheaded woman wished. Well, she wasn't going to let Bloom Domino-Peters win this round — any round. She wouldn't accept this, she wouldn't let the woman control her life.

With a heavy sigh, Raven pulled her hood down and walked out of Alfea's school courtyard, running a hand through her hair as she strolled into the forest that lay in between all three of the top schools of Magix. She needed a break, and she needed some air to clear her head. Now, if she got lost and got permanently away from those two, maybe that would be a bonus, but she sincerely doubted that would happen if what Bloom had said was true. There was no way that the queen would let Domino's most powerful source of magic go at any point at all.

Well, a girl could always dream.

Raven just shook her head as she walked into the forest; the only dreams worth dreaming were the ones that could ever possibly happen, and that was unrealistic.

* * *

Maho stared after the black-clad strawberry blonde as she sprinted away, the silver-haired princess raising her sunglasses up from her nose bridge and resting them on her head. She peered after the retreating back of the other girl, her blue eyes thoughtful as she considered what had been said and the almost exaggerated reaction of the younger. "Well, that was quite an alarming reaction," she noted, "do you think she will be alright?" She looked back to the group — all of them, save Lilliana, shrugging a little, and Lilliana just murmured something unintelligible. She hummed, a thought in her mind. "The Dragon's Flame," she noted thoughtfully, "that's the most powerful source of magic in the entire Dimension."

Harmony frowned, the petite girl tilting her head to a side as she contemplated what had been said. "That's right," the magenta-haired girl said. "The power of the Dragon's Flame is special, hereditary magic belonging to the Dominese royal line, passed down to the newest generation each time they're born. Some religious freaks even call the fairy — and it has always been a fairy — with the power of the Flame a harbinger of destiny. It's crazy. Why did Auntie Bloom mention something about our mothers passing down part of it to us? I mean, the Flame's always been exclusively a Dominese power, right?"

Lilliana shuffled her feet about, her brow furrowed together. "Well, I'm not sure about this, but..." she trailed off, biting down on her lower lip anxiously, "... my mother once told me about how the magic of friendship can bring about new magical miracles. My tutor told me about the legend of Bloomix and told me about how it was named after Aunt Bloom and how it was powered by the magic of the Dragon's Flame. I looked it up in the library, and there was even a book documenting it. The author rumoured that Aunt Bloom split the Dragon's Flame amongst the rest of the Winx Club too."

"Okay, so that explains one part of it," Tiara said, her hands on her hips. "Now, we've got to figure out the Dragon Powers. Hold on, give me a few minutes..." She dug around in her pockets, feeling around before she eventually pulled out a small, silver gadget in the shape of a flattened rectangle sheet, thinner than even a sheet of paper, and activated it, revealing one of the newest laptop models from Zenith. A green holographic screen was projected into the air, curving slightly in front of her. "Okay, let's see," she mumbled, pinning the gadget to her collar and using both hands to navigate the screen.

Her fingers flew across the screen, typing with a speed that was normally only ever seen in Zenithians as they navigated technology as easily as breathing. After a few moments of mumbling about the wireless connection in Alfea, the content of the screen loaded and she was able to access her page. "Here we go — finally! Alfea needs to get a few more routers and extensions, geez. Now... 'the Dragon Powers is the collective name given to the mythical set of six powers of the Six Great Dragons of Magix," she read, squinting at the minute writing on the screen. "Oh geez, this is a small font."

Maho leant over, brushing her straight silver bangs out of her eyes and narrowing her eyes a little so she could see better. With a frown, she picked up where the brunette girl had left off. "The Dragon Powers comprise of the Dragon's Flame, the Dragon's Light, the Dragon's Nature, the Dragon's Roar, the Dragon's Data, and the Dragon's Ocean. All but the Dragon's Flame have been omitted from many history books, and it is unknown why this is so. The Six Great Dragons, spearheaded by the Great Dragon, consist of the Holy Dragon, the Mother Dragon, the Muse Dragon, the Platinum Dragon, and the Serpent Dragon." Her brow furrowed together as she straightened. "How strange. That wasn't in any of the history books I was given by my tutor," she said with a frown, narrowing her eyes.

Naida made a face as she listened to what was being said, her features scrunching together. The Androsi princess walked over, her pixie hovering around her head. Blue eyes scanned over the information and she remained silent for a while, likely contemplating the information that had been given. Finally, she spoke, her expression contemplative. "Looks like our parents didn't know anything about this either," she finally remarked, folding her arms over her chest. "I mean," she continued, sounding rather hopeful, "they would have told us if they knew anything about us carrying some kind of Dragon's Flame equivalent, right?" When the question went unanswered, she repeated the word again. "Right?"

The five girls looked at each other rather uneasily, for none of them seemed to actually have any sort of answer for the question. Without any ability to actually answer Naida's question, everyone just fell silent, uncomfortably so.

"Did our mothers have them?" Lilliana asked timidly, hiding behind her curtain of dark hair. "The Dragon Powers? Maybe they didn't know it would have passed down to us, so that's why they didn't say anything... right? Or m-maybe they didn't know they had those powers in the first place." She seemed to visibly cringe at the statement when it made everyone look at her, and shrank back, shielding herself with her body language and behind her dark blue hair. "I'm sorry, that was stupid," she mumbled, bowing her head timidly to avoid getting more attention on her.

"No, no," Maho interrupted, holding out a hand. "You seem to be onto something, I daresay. I doubt our mothers knew — Mother would have said something about it to me if she knew. She never lies to me nor dad, not white lies, and certainly not lies of omission." She pursed her lips together into a thin line as the considered it again. "However, it sounds like Headmistress Faragonda knew this was coming for a long time, considering that we didn't hear a peep from her at this information, and they all met here in the first place." She crossed her arms over her chest as she continued to ponder it, glancing at the others.

Maho was pretty sure that she was the oldest one here, though of course, she could have been wrong since they all seemed to be about the same age, give or take a year. Harmony was extraordinarily short, only coming up to Maho's chin; Tiara barely even reached the bottom of her nose, but she was a little taller. Naida had an athletic figure that lent to her height, leaving her at just below Maho's eye level, and Lilliana, the tallest of all five, towering half a head over Maho herself, seemed to have a terrible shyness condition that prevented her from maintaining eye contact without looking down and away.

The silver-haired princess finally sighed after a moment of silence lingered one beat too long, and she turned to head down the hallway they had come from and where the last girl of the group — Raven, was it? It had to be, judging from Queen Bloom's statement, and as far as she knew, the Dominese and Eraklyonian family had only one child — had sprinted down. She ran a pale hand through her shoulder-length hair, slender fingers raking through the board-straight locks. "Well," she finally said, her tone cautiously rather neutral in comparison to the panic everyone seemed to be feeling, in and outside the headmistress' office, "I daresay that was an eventful hour. I propose that we don't wait outside — I have the feeling we should go and look for a certain someone."

That Raven girl. Something just didn't sit completely right with Maho about her, and it wasn't just the way her all-black ensemble made her look pale and sallow. No, a part of the issue seemed to lay much deeper, like... — well, she couldn't quite place her finger on it. There was something that irked her about Raven, and a part of Maho, the part that had been brought up to first and foremost defend herself and her own, feared it deeply, feared that it would grow out of control and end up endangering everything she held dear. But that was an oddly dark thought to describe a girl that would have barely entered magical education. Something about her just didn't make sense.

Nevertheless, Maho started walking down the hallway, running her thumb over the silver and deep navy ring on her right index finger — the decorative storage form of the Moon Stave — as she heard the scramble of footsteps behind her from the other girls as they began to catch up with her. The Moon Stave — one half of her mother's Staff of Solaria, paired with the chakram Sun Rings — sent a soft hum of soothing magic towards her, collecting the rays of sunlight from the windows that they passed and storing the latent magical energy within. Maho let her shoulders slump slightly, enough to be comfortable, but not too noticeable, and she felt the soothing call of the moon reach her. The focus of the staff, the stave, and the rings were essential to the growth of Solarian magic users — they were the first source of magic the Solarian heirs encountered, most of the time.

Because she'd had the stave for years now, Maho had since become incredibly in-tune with the magic signals it would give off, cueing her into various different kinds of events. A soothing flood of magic was what it usually was, the figurative calm before the storm in most cases. Sometimes, when there would be imminent danger from spells by novice magic users going wrong or simple accidents, there would be a spike in the magic to alert her. And then there were the 'rage' moments where her mother would storm into a training room after a terrible day at court and just take out her rage on the magic proof room.

This lay somewhere in between those accidents and her mother's court-induced rage, a spike that hit her, catching her off guard, a warning that she would need to hurry. It didn't click with her for a few moments as she thought about what it could be, and then it hit her — Raven. She stopped abruptly in her tracks and trusting her ring's warning, she began to hurry down the hallways. "Let's move it!" she called over her shoulders as she made a sprint towards the gates of Alfea. "She's in trouble!"

* * *

How did she get herself into these kinds of situations all the time?

Raven cursed quietly under her breath as she kept very still behind the thick trunk of a large tree, her slender form completely hidden by the branching trunk as a shard of freshly broken glass — those were the sharpest, as she had been told by her Earth-raised father — shot right by her, burying into another trunk and shattering into smaller shards. _Great going, Raven,_ she groused, chiding herself. _Not even a day away from Domino_ _— heck, not even a few hours — and you get attacked by a bunch of idiots dressed like stereotypical Earth witches. For goodness sake, Dad already said how stupid Earth's depiction of them was._

Ralph enjoyed a lot of how Earth portrayed magic, often calling it 'amusing little tidbits' of his home culture, but he also noted that a lot of them were biased and coloured the perception of 'good' and 'bad' with fairies and witches. He'd shared stories of how the fae — fairies — used to often be described as troublemakers with no true perception of human morality, and how there were also 'light witches' in some folklore, much to the amusement of the Quinn family. The moral after every story was always the same, though — as long as her magic was used for the purpose of good, it didn't matter whether she was a fairy, a witch or anything in between.

Speaking of using her magic for good...

One of her assailants, a dirty blonde wearing a blue bodysuit with an 'NT' emblazoned in the middle with white, levitated in the middle of the forest clearing they were in, crossing her arms over her chest and tossing her head back to tip the peak of her black witch's hat away from her face. With an audible growl, she threw out her arms and summoned shards of sharp glass into her gloved hands in between her fingers. "Come out, little fairy girl!" she yelled as the shards came flying through the air again towards the strawberry blonde's direction, shattering against yet another tree trunk.

Another voice joined in, and a blast of energy streaked through the air to rip apart the abused tree trunk into strips of bark flying everywhere. "You little pixie, stop hiding! You're making me angry!" Another blast came, followed by another and another, and Raven was forced to press herself up against the tree and keep herself in the shadow, though the light of the energy blasts did make it so that she was having a hard time keeping in the shadow all the time. "Oh, come on! Just show yourself!" There was the stamping of feet, and Raven could only guess that she'd angered the witch in question.

Raven felt vaguely insulted by the name being thrown out. She had never understood why witches liked to insult fairies by calling them pixies. She perhaps got the idea that the fairies were perceived as being 'smaller' and 'weaker', thus like a pixie, but it just didn't make sense. Fairies and witches were both extremely powerful in their own right — as her mother professed, she'd once met her match in a freshman witch when she was in her senior year — but some of the pixies had powers that no fairy or witch was even allowed to use.

Emotional magic, for one, was at the top of the list. Fairies, witches and warlocks with emotion-based magic were tightly regulated when it came to their powers, as unlike magic users with elemental abilities, they could easily commit crimes without the visible evidence of duress. Pixies though, they were allowed to use it freely, as it was recognised that their use of magic was required to help fulfil their bonded fairy's journey of growth. A sufficiently dastardly pixie could cause immense chaos.

Raven said none of this out loud, though, preferring to preserve her own safety in favour of correcting the witches. Instead, she scowled to herself, her eyes narrowing and her brow furrowed together as she tried to figure out a way out of here without having to make a run for it towards Alfea... which she had also lost track of. For all she knew, she would have just run further into the woods until she came out at Cloud Tower or Red Fountain, and she sincerely doubted that there would be a teacher at any of the schools during this time. _Who are these psychos?_

"Come on, little pixie... you could save yourself the trouble of getting caught," a third voice joined in, lightly singsonging her statement. "Just come out right now and face the truth, and surrender to the greatness of the Neo Trix!"

That was some arrogance. Quite some arrogance, in fact. The name was ridiculous — Raven scoffed mentally when it was declared, careful to not make a peep — but then it hit her like a bus when she thought further about it. The Trix was the name of the infamous trio of witch sisters that had attempted to take over the Magix Dimension _multiple_ times, sometimes alone, sometimes under the employment of dangerous and infamous criminals such as the Shadow Phoenix Darkar and Valtor of the Dark Dragon's Flame. These three were modelling themselves after the most infamous criminal sisters in the entire dimension.

"Their successors?" Raven murmured to herself under the sound of branches getting shaved off by shards of glass, the breaking of said branches from explosive blasts, and the levitation of said branches before they were snapped into more pieces and thrown away. "Maybe not." She sincerely doubted that those three criminals would have left their 'grand' legacy to the hands of a couple of idiots to be ruined completely. Still, would it have been possible for them to be the children of the Trix sisters? There was a rumour about it, that there was at least one descendant of the Trix in the dimension, after all.

Regardless, the strawberry blonde filed that thought away, ducking to a side to avoid being speared through by another shard of glass that was being flung her way. She had to get out of this scenario first and foremost. Would it even be possible for her to fight them off, outnumbered as she was, and powerless? Raven glanced down at her hands, and she shook her head. She knew that even if she wasn't outnumbered, a girl that had yet to unlock her source of magic would not be able to triumph over three seasoned magic users. It would be foolish to try, and especially at a time like this, she would be placed in danger she couldn't get out of.

An explosion boomed right beside her, and her eyes widened as she curled into a ball, pressing herself up against the tree trunk anxiously as she tried to make herself less of a target. She just had to survive until the witches got tired of her, and then she could start finding her way back to Alfea College. Once she was out of the thickest part of the forest, she wouldn't be having a hard time locating the pink and blue building after all, right? Oh, she certainly hoped so, but that was for later.

A spike of warmth flooded her, and for a moment, it felt like she could hear five sets of footsteps coming towards her in the forest — it felt like missing pieces of a puzzle were coming together to form a whole. It was only that momentary flicker, and then it was gone, but intrinsically, she could feel it — the other five girls were coming towards her. _That feeling... they'd better get here soon. I need to find answers for that, somehow,_ she thought with a scowl.

Now, just to survive until they found her.

A blast of energy narrowly missed her, and Raven just cringed. That was easier said than done.


	8. A Curb-Stomp Battle

Lilliana walked slowly, almost lingering behind the other four girls save Tiara, as they trekked through the jungle, trying to locate where Raven had gone. Well, they were trying, but they were all walking in the same direction, and it wasn't just because Maho was leading them that way — something was telling them all to go that way, and they knew it was right, somehow. The dark blue-haired girl herself could see the signs in the wildlife around them, flowers that had grown on vines facing the direction they were walking in, fallen leaves on the ground with their ends pointed in the direction... She picked a fallen leaf from atop her pink beret and twirled it in her hands before she tossed it a few meters in front of her, letting it flutter softly to the ground.

It fell, the pointed end pointing right in front. A sign that they were going the right way.

Lilliana wished she had worn a shirt and pants instead of her favourite floral dress, though — as much as she loved this dress and it was appropriate for most functions, it wasn't suitable for walking through forests in. Then again, her pink pumps were a bad idea as well, even though their heel was relatively low compared to the ones her mother wore for court. Even so, though, she wasn't the last one — she was walking in front of Tiara, who was huffing and puffing and trying to catch up, while Harmony kept stopping to make sure neither she nor Lilliana got lost when she, Maho and Naida forged ahead. It had the chain effect of having Naida slow down to keep them in her line of sight, and Maho stopped as well when she realised she was leaving them behind.

How Maho's white attire was completely unmarred even as they walked through wet muddy ground, Lilliana didn't know.

But regardless of that, Lilliana hoped that they would be able to get back to Alfea College before their parents realised that something was amiss and that Maho would teach all of them whatever miraculous cleaning charm she was using because no cleaning charm Lilliana had been taught was _that_ effective. She didn't want to know what would happen if her parents found out that she had run off into the forest with the other children of the original six members of the famed Winx Club. Well, actually, she already knew what would happen, and she really didn't want to have to see it through again.

Her mother — who was undoubtedly a lovely person, was also insanely strict when it came to her safety — would place her under temporary house arrest for one more year until she was old enough to attend Alfea full time, and then, her father would arrange for one of the palace guards to follow her around at all times until she went to Alfea. Being the Grand Duke and Duchess of Linphea had immense benefits that came with it — her father also directed the Linphean Royal Guard and her mother was the Queen's right-hand lady in all political matters, but that was secondary to their granted position — so she was already more than well-protected in and around Linphean borders, but that protection didn't extend to areas outside of her home planet. If she got hurt, it was safe to say that her parents would take on rather _extreme_ measures to keep her safe.

She appreciated her parents' care for her, but that wasn't to say that it couldn't be a little smothering at times, because it was, and Lilliana wondered why her parents were so overprotective.

At any rate, Maho had continued taking the lead as she strode through the forest, stepping elegantly over protruding roots as they hunted down Raven's presence within the forest. Her shoulder-length silver hair and primarily white attire made her stand out in the greenery of the forest, which also led to her being very easy to keep track of as long as she wasn't going too far away, so Lilliana wasn't afraid of losing track of her.

Behind her was Naida, who was actively pushing her way through bushes in search for Raven, though it was clearly futile. Then, she stopped and hushed the rest of the girls, holding a hand up in the air and a finger up to her lips. "Listen," she started immediately. "Do you hear that sound? I think I'm hearing... breaking glass? Okay, hush for a moment and listen." She fell silent after, and lo and behold, there immediately followed up with the sound of what seemed to be a pane of glass shattering when a rock was flung at it, the crisp sound breaking the natural forest silence.

"Hey, get back here, you little pixie!" shouted a female voice, and immediately after, it was followed up by sounds of shattering glass overlapping with snapping tree branches, making Lilliana cringe. It was followed up by two more voices — also female — shouting something unintelligible over the sounds of explosions, breaking branches and shattering glass.

Lilliana strained her ears to try and pick up the rest of the conversation, pulling a leaf off an overhanging vine and tossing it to the ground to see where she should be looking at. Seeing an altered direction, she immediately frowned and continued to listen, trying to pick out voices from the din of the fight nearby. She gingerly tried to take a step forward to close the distance and help her hear better, but a rustling sound stopped her in her tracks. Almost as if in slow motion, she saw a flower droop downwards, and she tried not to yelp as she immediately dropped onto the ground, just in time to avoid a shard of glass that flew out from the bushes and right at her.

The glass shard skimmed the top of her beret and shattered against the bark of a tree and Lilliana squeaked as she covered her head, her beret sliding down further over her eyes as if that would protect her from further projectiles if she couldn't see them. She heard more rustling and the dark blue-haired girl just flattened herself on the forest floor as well as she could, not caring if her floral dress got dirty — considering the accumulated dirt on the forest ground, it would anyway — and she could think about how to hide this from her parents later. Right now, her primary consideration was on how to make herself as small of a target as possible to avoid getting hurt.

"Incoming!" Harmony exclaimed. "Everyone hit the deck!" The petite girl quickly tumbled onto the ground, pulling down Tiara with her, just in the nick of time to avoid a barrage of glass and stones that shot out from the greenery. A dried leaf had somehow gotten into one of her pigtails and a twig stuck out of another, but Lilliana doubted anyone cared right now about what state their hair was in.

All the dirt that had gotten onto them would no doubt be a clue to their parents that they had gone into the forest, or at least, that they had left Alfea, but saving their hide was the main priority right now. As long as they were physically intact, they could find a way to clean off their clothes so they were less conspicuous. Maybe Maho could teach them whatever charm she was using to keep her white clothes pristine.

With all five of the girls stomach-first on the ground, they managed to avoid the projectiles that were escaping the greenery and smashing into the trees behind them. More shards of glass were fired through the thick cover of the trees — the poor things were suffering irreparable damage to their trunks from the sharp edges — and the group was appropriately alarmed when a large shard shot right over Tiara's head and landed in the ground barely a few finger-widths from her ankle. Glass exploded outwards in their direction, and all around, the loud bangs of explosions masked the crisp sound of shattering glass. Just as Lilliana raised her head timidly to see if it was over, a rock shot out from the trees and nearly smashed right into her face, between her eyes.

Naida's hand shot right out, snatching the fist-sized rock from the air and tossing it back down towards the floor. She immediately drew in a breath through grit teeth, flexing her wrist a little like she was trying to shake off the pain from the projectile. "Oh, that hurt," she mumbled. "It's going to leave a mark for sure. You okay, Lilliana?" she asked as she carefully flexed her fingers, staring down at her hand. Even though her skin was quite dark, as was the case for most of the Androsi population due to their beach biomes, a dark blue and purple bruise could be seen outlined on her palm from the force of the rock's impact. "Oh, _ow_."

Lilliana just paled further and nodded quietly in response to Naida's question, thankful for the save. "Y-yes," she stammered quietly, staring at the other girl's bruising hand. "I'm fine, just a little, um, a little shaken. Thank you for that... are you... are you alright?" she asked timidly in a soft voice, making a slight gesture towards Naida's hand. She kept her head low, just in case more stones came flying their way — it would just hit her head instead of her face.

Before the dark blue-haired Linphean could get a response, though, Maho cut in with her louder — and certainly more regal and intimidating — voice as she pushed herself up. "That's it," she said sharply, her blue eyes narrowed as she brushed off invisible dust from her star and moon-patterned clothing — which, mind you, was still eerily pristine white and blue — and removed something from her hand. "I'll deal with this." The Solarian tossed what she had taken from her hand, likely a ring, up into the air, a faint silver glow encasing it and dropping a stave in her hand, with a long light blue shaft and a silver crescent moon at the top. "Stay here, stay safe," she instructed.

The girls nodded, and then from the forest, the female voice they'd first head suddenly roared out, "Gotcha, you little pixie! You're done for now! Take _this!"_

A sound of alarm — somewhere between a cry of surprise and a choked back scream — was then heard, and Lilliana knew that Raven was in trouble. She cringed when she heard the sound of something heavy hitting a tree, followed by glass shards shattering against the tree trunk, rustling the leaves of the tree and dropping several leaves, all of which pointed at the bushes. _Oh, poor thing, that has to hurt,_ she thought to herself, and then she realised that Raven was right there in front of them, and she looked over at Maho, who already seemed to have gotten the message as well.

"Guess we've found her," the silver-haired Solarian commented. She took her sunglasses off the top of her head, folding them and tucking them into her pocket. She ran a hand through her shoulder-length hair and tossed it over her shoulder as she began to move into the woods, light on her feet and looking completely in control of the situation. "If someone attacks you, turn and run straight back to Alfea," she added as she was just about to walk through the bushes. "Don't do anything foolish."

"O-oh, be careful!" Lilliana called out after the Solarian princess, wanting to make sure the older girl got the point as well that even if she could handle whatever it was in the forest, she needed to take caution as well. She was certain that the attackers weren't going to be nice to Maho either, and that it was a seriously bad idea to attack, especially if Maho was outnumbered, judging from the sounds she heard. Maybe if she herself had paid a bit more attention when her mother had been teaching her about ways to control her powers, she would have already learnt to transform into her first fairy form, but that was too late already.

The dark-haired girl just sighed, lying on her stomach on the forest ground as her long hair slid over her face and hid her eyes. "Oh, I just hope we don't get into too much trouble once this is over," she whispered.

"I just hope we make it out in one piece," Naida said softly. "You think Maho's going to be able to handle it?"

"She's confident," Harmony said, raising her head enough to look all of the others in the eye, "and dad says that 'if you're not all that, then fake it 'til you make it'." She drummed her fingers on the ground, managing a weak smile. "I hope she's got it."

"Then let's cross our fingers and hope," Tiara said, peering up uneasily at the bushes. She inhaled, and puffed out her cheeks as she stared at the bushes — no projectiles were flying anywhere at the moment, thankfully. "Cause even if she doesn't, we're going to need that hope."

The girls all looked at each other and just sighed, almost in unison, as they proceeded to duck their heads, as none of the four felt like they wanted to get hit by any flying projectiles that could come.

* * *

Maho took off into the clearing, the Moon Stave in hand as she burst through the thick greenery of bushes and trees. She was greeted with the sight of three girls in pointed, wide-brimmed hats, one of them holding up a glass shard that she was about to throw at Raven, who had gotten herself onto one of the trees in what Maho could only suspect was an attempt to get herself away. The Solarian girl's mind immediately locked onto the three girls and their ridiculous hats — stereotypical Earth witch hats, she realised — and she raised her stave threateningly. "Hey, you witches!" she yelled at them, drawing their attention away from her.

One of the trio, the blonde holding the glass shards, looked at her with watery green eyes. Her messy dirty blonde hair was frizzed and tangled under the brim of the black hat as she tipped the hat back. "What's this, girls? Another pixie for us to play with?" She raised her hand and waved it in the air, creating a plane of glass in the air that shattered into shards behind her with a snap of her fingers. Pointing at the silver-haired princess, she swept her arm towards Maho, shouting, "Die, pixie!"

Maho's blue eyes widened as she raised her weapon into the air on reflex, twirling the shaft to use it as a bat. She batted away the shards of glass that got too close to her, redirecting them into the ground and preventing them from getting past her. "Hey!" she retorted, narrowing her eyes. She was no pixie! Spinning the Moon Stave in her hand, the princess held it up and yelled, "Maho Magic Winx!" Using the words as a focus just like her mother had taught her too, the fairy concentrated her power and let the magic of the Moon Stave wash over her as she instinctively shut her eyes.

Silver light enveloped the fairy in ribbons of light, drawing on the power of the full moon at midnight to transform her. The princess raised both of her hands, crossing her wrists, and the shining rays of the moonlight wrapped around her forearms, forming into her wristbands. Leaning back, the girl kicked a leg up into the air, slender streams of softly glowing moonlight curled around her legs, wrapping around and pulling taut before bursting into her boots. Her shoulder-length silver hair pulled itself up, twisting into a high ponytail with a wrapped tube tie, and Maho smirked confidently as she dropping into a self-assured pose, holding her stave out as her wings fluttered lightly. The magic around her dispersed, and she announced, "Maho, Fairy of the Moon!"

Her clothes had changed into the simplistic fairy attire, replacing her blue and white ensemble with a glittering silver outfit. She was clad in a one-shoulder crop top with the strap bearing a braided pattern, going over her right shoulder, and a pair of matching mini-shorts and her white knee-high boots were now a sparkling silver as well. Her ponytailed hair was held in place by a white tube tie, and around her forearms, she wore two light blue cuff-like bands that faintly sparkled. Her wings were a light powder blue, tipped off by a lovely silver that matched the rest of her ensemble. Her entire outfit was reminiscent of that of her mother's, even down to her wings.

"Oh, look what we have here, girls," the blonde of the three fashion disasters sneered, her hands on her hips as she looked at Maho with narrowed eyes. She bared a sly smile at the fairy, tilting her head slightly as she looked down her nose at Maho. "This little pixie's here to save her friend, and she thinks that she can intimidate us with a sparkly transformation! How about we show her what for, girls?" It was received with a cheer by the other two girls, and the blonde continued, "What do we do with pixies, girls?"

"We tear them apart!" the second cheered enthusiastically, her magenta-streaked green ponytail bouncing eagerly in the air as she bounced on the balls of her feet. She raised her hand, covered in a neon pink glove that reached all the way up to her upper arms. Three branches, broken off and fallen to the ground, were quickly encased in a bright pink glow, and all the twigs they had on them were stripped off to form sharp points, and they hovered in the air, poised to strike out at Maho.

The third, a redhead with disastrously exaggerated electric blue makeup on her face, cheered in agreement. "Yeah! Let's get on it, girls!" Her face, covered in unsightly acne, was twisted into an ugly sneer as she balled her hands into fists, glowing with heat as she raised her hands into a boxing stance. "Let's show this little pixie what for!"

Maho grimaced at the terrible colour coordination they had, as well as the horrific idea of putting makeup on already sensitive skin. "Ugh, ew," she muttered to herself. "Learn some self-care spells before you try to attack people, honestly." Her hands gripped her stave more firmly and she held it in front of her, pointing the crescent towards the three of them. "Well, it's time to let you go. Go away and run from me in fear, that is. _I'll_ show you girls what for." Silver energy gathered at the crescent moon at the top of the stave, growing and pulsing with power. Spinning the Moon Stave around in her hand, she slashed the stave down at the three witches and blasted them with the silver energy, shouting out, "Crescent Beam!"

The blonde raised a glass shard to deflect it, but when the shard was vaporised by the energy blast, she paled and scrambled out of the way even as the second girl tried levitating branches and felled trees to protect her and her companions. The energy blast vaporised everything in its path before slamming into another tree, burning a hole into it. "Oh, dear Dragon!" the blonde gasped. "Suzie, get Debbie behind you!" she ordered, her green eyes wide. "We need cover, stat!

The redhead, Suzie, pushed the magenta and green-haired girl, Debbie, behind her. "On it, Irene!" She raised her hands up into the air and blasted the ground, kicking up a storm of dust that was quickly parted by another blast by Maho. But as the dust cloud began to settle, the sound of hasty footsteps indicated that they were beginning to flee away to prevent them from getting hurt by another blast of energy from the fairy.

"We're going to be back, pixie!" Irene yelled out, but when the dust completely settled, they had run away and fled completely into the forest, leaving no trace.

Maho huffed, a little disappointed. She had thought that witches would have been more of a challenge, but she was also glad that they'd run in the other direction so the other girls were alright. She released her transformation in a shower of silver light and replaced her sunglasses on the bridge of her nose. Walking over to Raven, she held a hand out to the strawberry blonde as the black-clad girl began to scale her way down the tree she was on. "You alright?" she asked critically, eyeing the girl from behind her dark glasses.

Raven didn't take her hand, sliding down the rest of the trunk and landing on the ground in a crouch. She straightened, dusting off her jacket, and pulled the hood of her jacket up over her head as she eyed Maho down. "I'm fine," she replied snappily, her voice terse and her eyes untrusting. "You certainly took your own sweet time getting here, huh?"

The silver-haired princess just scowled at the girl. "I _saved_ your behind from those nutjobs," she retorted, returning the Moon Stave into a ring and slipping it onto her finger again. "You could have died if they had been more accurate. Appreciate that I even arrived at all rather than complain that I didn't come earlier. You didn't exactly give me any trail to follow either," she argued, pointing at the younger girl's head in a harshly accusatory manner. She didn't appreciate the tone the girl had taken with her.

The strawberry blonde shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket, standing her ground. "I do," she replied curtly. "Thank you for saving me, _princess._ Or should I call you 'Your Highness'?" The sardonic tone that had entered her voice was just an undertone, but Maho picked up on it ever so clearly regardless. Raven blew a stray lock of hair out of her other eye. "I think it's about time we go. Your parents are going to get worried if we stay out here for too long, Your Highness." She spat the word out like it was poison in her mouth, but Maho sensed something off.

Raven seemed like she hated the words related to royalty and parentage more than she hated Maho. The words 'princess', 'your highness' and 'parents' in particular drew most of her ire like they had killed someone close to her. It was an intriguing mystery to unpack — or rather, it would be if Maho wasn't still rather infuriated at how little Raven seemed to appreciate being saved at all.

Watching as Raven began to walk back in the direction she'd just come from, Maho narrowed her blue eyes behind her sunglasses as she stared hard at the other girl. Nonetheless, she walked off behind her. _What's wrong with her, for the Dragon's sake? That's a mystery I don't want to unpack at all._ The silver-haired girl began the trip back to Alfea, already casting her cleaning charm on her clothing again.

Now all she had to do was convince her parents that she and the others hadn't left Alfea at all and everything would be peachy.


	9. Schools

Harmony walked behind the other girls as the group of six headed back from the forest towards the pink and blue school for fairies. Inwardly, the petite girl wondered how much trouble she was in with her mother, but brushed it off as nothing to the back of her mind. "Hey girls," she finally said, "you know we'll be in trouble, right?"

Maho scoffed. "Well, if it wasn't for Little Miss Angsty over here," she said, thumbing a finger over at Raven, "we wouldn't be in this mess!" She sniffed, turning her nose up at the strawberry blonde that was walking a little behind the group of six. The fairy huffed, tossing her silver hair over her shoulder. "Honestly," she said with a haughty sniff, "you're making things hard for us."

Raven snorted. "Oh, am I?" she asked sarcastically. "I didn't ask for you to help me, at any rate." The girl shoved her hands into the pockets of her black jeans, walking faster and past the group of five, going toward Alfea without making to wait for the other girls. Briefly, she turned around, and her single blue eye settled onto Maho. A sneer curled the girl's lip. "Next time, if you're going to complain, then _don't save me._ " With that said, she turned back and continued to walk on, her head lowered slightly as she trekked to the school without another word.

The silver-haired fairy frowned. "Such a disrespectful girl!" she commented, lowering her sunglasses over her eyes as she strolled forward.

Harmony just looked over at Tiara, who gave her a little shrug, indicating that her best friend wasn't going to say a word in this at all, not to help either the haughty silver-haired girl nor to help the annoyingly brooding strawberry blonde. The girl with the magenta pigtails huffed, but continued to walk after the group, not wanting to let her short stride be the reason she was first left behind, then got lost in the forest.

After half an hour, the girls made the trek back to Alfea's gates just in the nick of time, as their parents were just exiting the school building to come and find them. Harmony allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief at not getting caught, especially thanks to a quick cleaning charm by Maho, who was still as pristine as ever. The magenta-haired girl supposed that her knowledge of the charm was why she was so clean.

The short girl toyed with one of her low pigtails as she watched her two parents walk out. Her mother seemed more tense than usual, and her father was just stoic, not that it was anything new. The fourteen-year-old sighed, shoulders slumping slightly. She knew, based on intuition and experience, that her parents would get into an argument when they got home, and she'd have to go up to her room to blast music at full volume if she wanted to avoid hearing it again.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Tiara give her a sympathetic smile as the young fairy shrugged her shoulders. The action made Harmony feel the slightest bit better, seeing as her best friend ever knew what she was going up against. Even after a few years of no longer living close to each other, they still knew each other like the back of their hands, and if Harmony was grateful for one thing, it was that she would enter Alfea at the same time Tiara did.

"Well, girls," their aged headmistress called, "come here, please." She clapped her hands in the air, motioning for the group to come towards their parents as well. "I believe it's about time for us to have a short tea break to rest and relax before we discuss anything else." She turned to the original six Winx fairies, smiling in a matronly manner at the six women. "Now girls, I trust you still remember the way to the cafeteria?" The elderly woman made a slight gesture with a frail hand, her smile not moving in the slightest as she looked back over to the six teens. "Come now, girls," she called, voice louder. "We wouldn't want to get separated."

Harmony nodded, the petite girl slipping her hands into the pockets of her denim skirt. "Alright, Headmistress," the girl mumbled, looking over at Tiara, who was already running towards her parents, a concerned frown on the pink-haired girl's face as she talked with her famous parents, her hands wringing as her parents replied patiently to her with what the magenta-haired girl was pretty sure was a false smile.

Her own parents walked over, and her mother just sighed as she placed a hand on the young fairy's shoulder. Her father did the same, his eyes meeting her mother's above her head in a solemn-looking glance. The fairy of music sighed heavily and gently shooed her into the building. "Come on, Harmony," she murmured, "let's head inside and get something to eat, alright? We'll be here for a while, so you can talk more with Tiara after lunch if you want."

The magenta-haired girl looked over at her father, who simply grunted his assent to his wife's statement, and the man walked back towards the building with wide strides, prompting a sigh from both the petite fairy and her mother. "Did something happen, mom?" the teen asked, her eyes flickering over to her mother and away from her worn red sneakers. "You and dad aren't usually so..." So 'what'? Terse? No, her father was definitely like that all the time. Untalkative? Again, that was her father seventy percent of the time.

"So... unusual?" Musa guessed, and it was that word which let her daughter nod once. "Just some bad news, Harmony. Don't worry about it." The dark-blue haired woman sighed softly, pressing a gentle kiss to the crown of her daughter's head, ruffling the pigtailed hair. The older fairy cracked a small smile. "Inside with you."

"Yes, mom," the girl said, heading inside after her friends — friends, yeah, they were her new friends. Not just Tiara, but the others too.

* * *

While the entire group filed into the cafeteria to have a small break, Bloom was a tad more restless. The Queen of Domino and Eraklyon stood at the entrance to the area, looking down at a heart-shaped gold locket she had in the palm of her hand. It had originally been a present for her stubborn child for her twelfth birthday, but the girl had refused any sort of gifts and had always done so. Perhaps the child had simply inherited her temper, but still... to hold a grudge against her for so long... it still hurt so much to think about it.

The redhead sighed, gripping the locket tightly in hand and pushing it into the pocket of her jeans. It wasn't really queenly attire, denim jeans and a faded pink blouse, but it was what made her comfortable, and that was the important thing. Her blue eyes searched the room to find where Raven was, so her and her husband could try and talk to their daughter, but the strawberry blonde hair was nowhere in sight, nor was the black hoodie that the girl so favoured.

That was odd... where was the girl?

Bloom made sure to look around again to see if she had just missed her daughter, but she couldn't find the fourteen-year-old child anywhere. Pressing her lips together, she made her way over to Sky, the blond king casually conversing with Brandon as the two men stood at another wall. Excusing both of them from the brunette man, she whispered into her husband's ear, "I can't find Raven anywhere." Concern filled her tone, and the fairy's brow knit together in worry. "Where's she gone?"

Sky, startled by the statement, looked around too, not finding the obstinate young fairy anywhere. "I'll go and look for her," he told the former bearer of the Dragon's Flame, which managed to calm her down somewhat. The king of two planets leaned in, gently kissing her cheek, then pulled away. He gave the woman a comforting smile, assuring her that it would be alright, then exited the room, leaving the redhead standing there with some measure of worry for their daughter.

The woman just sighed heavily, running a hand through her long red curls as she finally turned at the sound of Stella calling her name. Plastering on a smile, like she did with visiting diplomats, the queen walked over to her blonde best friend and sat down beside her and her silver-haired daughter — the hair colour of which, as she would later learn through a casual discussion, was a recessive gene on the Solarian queen's lineage. Quickly getting herself caught up with the current discussion, Bloom turned all her attention onto it to distract her from the whole situation that weighed on her shoulders.

* * *

Sky walked into Alfea's vast library, his shoulders visibly slumping. He had searched most of the campus, and this was his second to last stop before he had finished searching the entire school, with his last stop being the potion labs. He sincerely doubted Raven would be at the last location as the labs were supposed to be locked and all, but it didn't hurt to just make sure of it.

The blond man glanced up at the tall bookshelves stuffed to the brim with magical texts and various scrolls, looking around for a hint of strawberry blonde hair or the all-black ensemble his daughter preferred. Honestly, he had thought she would have grown out of that phase by now, but she was still young, as he was oft reminded. He sighed heavily, running a hand through his blond locks.

By the Dragon, or rather, Dragons, being a parent was harder than it seemed.

Sky stopped, hearing something. The man frowned, tilting his head to a side as he heard the sound again, trying to distinguish the quiet sound of _something_. It sounded very thin, like a piece of parchment or... the page of a book! Following the sound with cautious, light footsteps, a habit he had kept from his Specialist training, the king of Eraklyon walked down two aisles until he finally happened across a secluded corner of the library where nearly no light was shining, and there he saw Raven, curled up in the corner with some thick tome.

He wondered how the girl was even able to read with that lack of a proper light source. At that rate, she'd have to start wearing glasses very soon.

Raven snapped the book shut as soon as the teen saw him and she put the book down on the carpeted floor. She dashed off through the library right after, like a bat right out of heck, or maybe like a prey animal once they saw a hunter? Nevertheless, she ran off once she saw him, like she didn't want him, her own father, seeing what she was up to.

Grimacing at the blatant reminder of how little his own daughter trusted her parents, Sky walked forwards to pick up the book and at least return it to its proper place. The heavy tome was bound with scaly skin and tied shut with a twine cord at the middle of the book to keep it shut. The king lifted up the heavy book with a heave, surprised at just how heavy it was, and took a look at the title as he walked back towards the entrance of the library. What he saw nearly made him drop the book onto his own foot in surprise.

How did Raven even know about the Dragons of Magix when they themselves had only just been told?!

* * *

"Well, girls, how do you like Alfea thus far?" Faragonda asked, smiling at the children as they had their lunch. She did a mental headcount and noted to herself with a nod that all of them were indeed present. Inwardly, she assessed each of the Winx girls' daughters in turn, starting from the oldest, Maho.

Maho was the oldest of the six girls, Stella's only daughter. She was haughty and not a little full of herself, though it was hard to say that it was unjustified, as she was the child of one of the famous Winx Club girls, after all. As far as the elderly fairy knew, she was fairly proficient in her magical prowess so far, so Faragonda was looking forward to seeing what the princess would do in the future.

"Maho," Faragonda said to the silver-haired girl with a kindly smile, "you're due to enter Alfea this term, isn't that right? I saw your name on the upcoming student list earlier this week when Griselda was looking over it and sorting out the dorm rooms."

The silver-haired girl nodded with a cool smile, running a hand through her shoulder-length hair. "That's correct," she confirmed. "I'm very excited to finally be here. Mother's been going on and on for weeks about how she thinks I'll like being here." The young fairy clapped her hands together in a collected manner, but despite that, her smile was enough to show her palpable excitement. "I cannot wait until the school term begins."

Faragonda smiled at the statement. "I'm glad you think so," she told the girl with a nod of agreement. "I hope you're ready." Seeing the nod from the girl as she turned back to her lunch, Faragonda proceeded to turn her thoughts towards the second oldest two girls in the group — Lilliana and Naida. First, she assessed Lilliana with a shrewd gaze.

Lilliana was shy and rather soft-spoken, from what Faragonda had seen so far. From Flora's own assessments, the girl was very artistic, much like her father, However, Faragonda had a feeling that her gentle nature would be effective in ensuring that the girls didn't come to blows. As far as she knew, the fairy was much like both her parents in all ways possible, even. It was likely that she'd be a very effective peacekeeper in the future.

Naida, on the other hand, seemed similar in nature to the other girl her age, being also rather quiet, but with her pixie always floating around her, she looked to be very attached to her pixie friend, which Faragonda couldn't blame her for, since her mother had also been very close to the village. While upon first glance, she seemed similar to her mother, as had happened when Aisha had first entered the school, but the elderly fairy could see the parts of her father in her quite easily. Whether she would follow her mother's footsteps and become a fairy, or her father's and become one of the warlocks of Magix, that was still to be seen.

"Lilliana, Naida, you're both set to enter Alfea next year, is that right?" Faragonda asked the two fifteen-year-olds, watching them carefully to focus on their reactions.

Lilliana nodded quietly, twirling a strand of dark blue hair around her finger as she picked at her food. "Yes," the tanned fairy said softly. "Mum and Dad have already prepared my documents and I've started with primary preparations just in case. Ah... it's alright if I spend time in the greenhouses after school, right?" she asked shyly. Ah, just like her mother then, a true nature-lover.

"But of course," Faragonda assured her with the same kind smile she showed everyone. "Here at Alfea, we do encourage learning outside of the curriculum on your own, as long as you consult a teacher whenever you need help." The bright smile she was given made the elderly woman smile in response.

"Oh, oh, can I go to the pixie village on weekends?" Naida asked with a beam, her pixie resting on her head and leaning forward to hear what the headmistress had to say. "I always go there once every three months, so it would be awesome if I could do it every week."

Her enthusiasm at the prospect of being able to freely go to the village as she wished made the elderly fairy chuckle. "Yes, most certainly, Naida. If you wish, you can even go with your friends if they want to come with you. Being bonded to a pixie is always a measure of personal growth between fairy and pixie, you must understand, but making friends is equally as well."

Now that the three were confirmed for Alfea, the headmistress turned her attention towards the youngest three of the Winx girls' children — Harmony, Tiara and Raven. The former two were old friends, and where one went, the other was sure to go, just like a shadow followed the object it was cast from, so Faragonda had little doubt about them. The former, Musa's child, had undoubtedly inherited her stubborn temper. Her parents had described her as taking an interest in physical combat, so there was little doubt there that she was Riven's child as well; the latter, Tecna's daughter, was perhaps a little different, having none of her powers but all of her intellect. She, much like her parents, was a veritable technological whiz, and had already begun to look into ways to further technology even at her young age. There was little to worry about regarding where the girls might go.

Raven, though, with her dour mood and from what her parents had described, an often sour disposition, seemed more likely to become a witch than a fairy. That was what the woman was worried about, if she had to be honest. Faragonda had nothing against witches, having been one herself in her youth, but what she worried the most about was the possible incompatibility between the wielders of the Dragon Powers. As the primary wielder of the Dragon's Flame, Raven was the 'gateway', so to speak to opening the powers for the other girls. It would be a distinct problem if she couldn't do so just because she had chosen to become a witch.

Regardless, Faragonda decided to ask them instead. "Harmony, Tiara, Raven, you three are fourteen this year, correct? You'll only be attending school after two more years, so you still have around a year and a half to apply for your chosen schools. Have you decided yet?"

Tiara beamed. "I'm going to Alfea," she said confidently. "I'm sure that Alfea College will the best decision for me to further my education." Spoken just like Tecna would have, perhaps, had the Winx girl been asked early on.

Harmony smiled at the statement. "I'm going to Alfea too," she said. "Or... well, I was also thinking I wanted to become a Specialist," she said shyly, just low enough for only Faragonda, who the girl was sitting next to, to hear. "I really do want to follow in dad's footsteps. He'd be happier that way, I think... He always did want a son."

Faragonda gave the uncertain girl a comforting glance. "Don't worry your mind about it," she assured gently. "Don't think about what makes your parents happy," she said in a soft voice to Harmony and her alone, "make sure that you're happy with that decision, or you won't be able to be your best in it." Seeing the magenta-haired girl nod in acceptance, she turned her gaze to Raven, who had yet to say a word. "And Raven? Alfea as well, I might presume?"

The strawberry blonde's hesitance to nod her head drew looks from everyone around the table.

Bloom hesitantly reached over and rested a hand on her child's shoulder. "Raven, sweetie?" she asked gently. "You're... going to Alfea like everyone else too, right?"

Raven stood up, pushing her empty plate aside as she looked straight into Faragonda's eyes. The girl brushed away her hair from her left eye, both blue eyes narrowed in determination. "I'm applying for Cloud Tower."


	10. Realisations and Revelations

"No, absolutely _not_!" Hands slammed down onto the cafeteria table with a loud bang, and the Queen of Domino and Erakylon was practically bursting with rage. Blue eyes were burning as she glowered at Raven, almost as if wishing the glare would cow the rebellious girl into submission. " _My_ child is not going to be a witch no matter what!" Eyes bright with anger, it was almost as if she would burst a vein if not calmed down within the next few minutes, and the air around her shot up to near boiling temperatures with her anger.

Raven suppressed a smug smirk twitching to curl the corners of her lips. Objective reached — make the woman blow a fuse.

She stepped away from the furious woman, running a hand through her front fringe and letting her hair fall naturally over her face, leaving her piercing blue eyes — the same as the woman in front of her — staring back, a harshly indifferent calm in comparison to the passionate rage of the woman that claimed to be her mother. "You can't _make_ me attend Alfea College," the strawberry blonde said spitefully, meeting the queen's glare with her own. "I'm going to _Cloud Tower,_ " she emphasised for effect, "with or without your 'support'."

She kept her voice low as she daringly stepped closer, mindless of the heat that was overflowing from the woman, her feet planted firmly on the ground. She felt her heart racing in anticipation of the results of this action, and without regard for whatever decorum she would be throwing out the window with this, she spat, "It takes a whole lot more than just giving birth to me to be my mother." A stab of pain hit her as she remembered what had happened four years ago, and her jaw tightened. She'd been told before that she was too young to hold a grudge, but she was of the opinion that there were few things one needed an age-limit on. "My _real_ parents are _dead_."

Snarling at the reminder she'd just delivered the queen as well as herself — her heart twinged painfully at the memory of her adoptive parents — Raven retreated towards the entrance of the cafeteria, away from where the others had been seated and in a place where she could be as alone as she could get without leaving the room. Oh, she was going to be in so much trouble when the 'family' returned to the Domino royal palace, but she couldn't care less about discipline — getting it off her chest had been something she'd looked forward to for weeks, months, even. The odd looks and horrified glances she'd gotten in that moment were worth the expressions on the faces of her 'parents', and despite her first thought to attend the Witch school having first been born of spite, she was feeling like she wouldn't be out of place there at this rate.

Seeing the other members of the Winx Club crowd around the queen to calm her down after Raven's little spiteful outburst, the girl turned her gaze away to retreat into her friend — solitude. At least it wouldn't judge her or give her those looks or make those demands that she listen. No, solitude was silent. It listened rather than spoke, and was always receiving, never giving judgement that she didn't want nor did she need.

Raven perched herself on a chair facing away from the group, her head in her hands as she inhaled deeply, closing her eyes. She hated this. She hated _all_ of this. She hadn't asked to be born to one of the most famous power couples in all of Magix. She'd been content growing up with Cassie and Ralph — the two that had really raised her — in the outskirts of the town near the Eraklyon palace, with no noble titles to her name, nor a need to be nobility. She hadn't had all of those expectations and demands foisted onto her as a commoner child, didn't need to put on fake faces like her tutors were insistent on then. It all felt too fake for a girl who had been told to be true to herself all the time.

Maybe if she had been raised by the king and queen — her birth parents, she grudgingly admitted to herself — by royalty, all of this would be different. Maybe she'd even be an arrogant twit like the princess of Solaria was, always critical, judgemental and so dang full of herself, but then again, she wasn't exactly innocent of the last one either, was she?

"Whatcha brooding about?"

Raven grit her teeth together to avoid saying anything disparaging — hadn't any of the younger of the two fairy generations gotten her meaning? She'd retreated here to be alone, not for them to pester her. "Go away, Naida," the strawberry blonde muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose as she looked up at the dark-skinned princess of Andros, giving her a harsh, one-eyed glare. Despite her best efforts, though, a hand on her shoulder from Naida had her instantly straightening up in her seat, her back ramrod-straight as a reflex from one of the etiquette tutors she'd had, reflexively trying to avoid the usual punishment. It took her a moment to realise what she was doing before her posture returned to normal and she leaned back in the seat, silently cursing out the reaction in the first place.

It looked like those lessons had stuck with her after all. How much longer until they'd get her to be one of those mindless, prissy princesses she'd seen before? If Raven had a say in it, never. She didn't want to be noble. She'd make herself as much of a rebel as she could to get out of it, and the trouble she'd cause would just be collateral. Necessary collateral, but collateral nonetheless.

"It's not good to hold it all in, you know," Lilliana said gently as the older girl took a seat next to her, on the other side of where Naida and her pixie had claimed a seat. The dark blue-haired girl gave her a gentle smile, possibly in an attempt to look comforting as she reached out a slender hand to take Raven's pale hands. It was meant as a comforting gesture if Raven was asked to hazard a guess, but it wouldn't work as expected if it was her intention.

Raven snatched her hand back, holding it with her other hand to her chest, clasping them together loosely as she eyed the girl warily. Her blue gaze was averted instantly from Lilliana's deep green eyes, and she similarly avoided Naida's prying gaze. The strawberry blonde kept her eyes focused on the other two girls' hands, but when she saw no movement even after a while, she finally let herself place both her hands down onto her lap, folded neatly and unobstructed if she needed them. "What do you two want?" Her voice was as harsh as ever.

"Bottling everything up isn't healthy, Raven," Lilliana said delicately as if she knew that the strawberry blonde didn't want them there with her at the moment. "I know that you don't particularly want to talk, especially not right now and that you don't really like any of us, but I'd like to be your friend, especially if it could make you feel better in the future." Her voice was steady and patient, calm and understanding. It didn't pressure her to respond positively.

Raven eyed the older girl with a wary eye before she turned her attention towards Naida, arching a brow at the other girl. No words were needed as she silently asked the same question once more.

The fairy shrugged, along with her pixie, who had moved to Naida's shoulder. "What Lilliana said," Naida stated confidently as if the other fairy had said everything that was needed to be said in the situation.

Raven pursed her lips into a thin line, looking warily between the two fairies. "Sure. Whatever." Her voice was dismissively flat — something she regretted to say that she'd learnt by imitating her etiquette tutors. It didn't really matter whether they wanted to be her friends or not. Even if they did, it wasn't like she'd hear from them until they all graduates and assumed authority of their respective kingdoms or the like, and she wouldn't be in the same school either if she got her way, so it wasn't like she'd have to accompany them. Though she supposed that Lilliana wasn't _too_ bad since she seemed to get Raven already.

"What?! Oh, by the Dragon, Michael! You should have called earlier than this!" the king of Eraklyon snapped into a phone, drawing everyone's attention back towards the main group. The blond man had stood up during the exchange and was looking incredibly frustrated as he ended the call, conversing quickly and in low tones with his wife before turning to the wizened headmistress of Alfea and speaking up. "I'm afraid we'll have to cut this visit short, Headmistress," he apologised, dipping his head briefly.

The elderly fairy shook her head with the same, matronly smile. "No worries, Sky," she assured warmly. "Politics are important matters, take your leave as you deem appropriate."

Meanwhile, though, the queen of Domino had turned to the other members of the Winx. "It's been a while since we've been able to just talk like this, girls," Raven overheard her saying. "Why don't you all come with us and we can take care of those other political loose ends while we're there? It would be great to be able to spend some more time with all of you."

It took some time as the rest of the Winx Club conferred with their respective others, but much to Raven's displeasure, they came to a unanimous agreement.

Still though, at least it meant that she'd be free of another etiquette tutor for a good while until they were all gone. It meant that she wouldn't be able to hide in those ridiculously lavish chambers that belonged to her as princess of the kingdoms though. She was forced to prioritise the pros over the cons, in this case — any escaping of those tutors was the right choice.

Raven stepped away from the doors as the adults left, followed by their daughters, and finally Faragonda, though, for whatever unfathomable reason, Lilliana and Naida saw fit to keep pace with her, and they remained in the very borders of her personal space bubble until the group reached the gates of Alfea College, where a ship waited to carry back the entire entourage. There, Raven was stopped by Faragonda, where that petite slip of a girl called Harmony was waiting as well.

Faragonda ushered Lilliana, Naida and Tiara onto the ship, turning towards the two girls she had held back for the moment. "You two," she started in a gentle voice, "take into consideration what you want first, and not what you think your parents would want. Your choice of schooling, once you're sixteen, will determine the way your lives play out in the future. Think very carefully about it, girls. You'll never be happy if all you do when considering your choices is to think about them."

Raven frowned at the statement — she could see where the elderly fairy was trying to say discreetly at this point, and Faragonda was just trying to care for her, she supposed. But she wouldn't ever be happy until _they_ were off her case and she wasn't stifled under noble politics. Besides, she didn't see a reason for the Headmistress to care anyway; she'd just confirmed that she had no interest in being a fairy in the slightest. She frowned. "I'm not going to be a fairy, not if that's what they want of me," she said harshly, perhaps a little more than she needed. Instantly, she felt guilty at the statement, especially after Faragonda had just given her some advice that would have been better taken, but she hoped that it helped carry her message across — there was no way she would acquiesce to the king and queen of Domino and Erakylon.

She could already feel the dark blue gaze belonging to Harmony lock firmly onto her, but Raven grit her teeth together, not letting it show how much she was getting aggravated by the unbreaking stare, even if the way she was furrowing her brow was betraying her feelings. The wide-eyed look she was getting from the other girl was just that, a look, she assured herself stiffly. She lowered her head towards the elderly woman in a wordless farewell and she turned around, reaching over to pull down her hood over her head.

Raven could still feel the glare boring holes into her head.

"Coming, Shorty?" she sneered derisively, in hopes that it would distract Harmony from her self-imposed challenge of boring holes into the back of her head with her glare alone. Before the short girl could retaliate in any way or manner, once the glare was broken, the strawberry blonde stormed off towards the ship that was still waiting for just the two of them, holding her head high as she brushed past one of the guards in the king's Royal Guard.

The stare was back, this time with a vengeance.

Raven sighed as she headed towards the back compartment of the ship, retreating into a corner. This was going to be a long ride.

* * *

"Harmony? What did Headmistress Faragonda say to you just now?" Tiara, seated beside Harmony, asked her, swinging her legs as she sat on a bench in the back of the ship decorated in the royal colours of both Eraklyon and Domino. "Harm?"

Harmony didn't hear her friend at all, her thoughts directed inwards. Her hands had found their way up to the base of her short, choppy magenta pigtails again, a habit the petite girl was sure she'd never be able to kick at this rate. She'd been trying not to glare at the stuck-up, spoilt brat of a daughter that Aunt Bloom had over in the corner away from here, accompanied by both Lilliana and Naida for some inconceivable reason. Honestly, what did they even see in her?

The girl certainly wouldn't be caught dead around that witch-in-training, especially when her only reason to be a witch was to spite her parents. How low could one get? Parents were people that you were supposed to respect, love and treasure no matter what, not act like... like _that_. It just went plain in the face of everything that Harmony's parents had drilled into her head since she was born.

Her mother had lost her own mother at a young age, while her father had left his father and stepmother on bad terms to enrol in Red Fountain, and hadn't had the chance to make up with them before they'd passed, so they had both held up their parents in high regard, and more so the importance of being filial to them. It was a law that Harmony would obey with no hesitance, so it was just ridiculous to see the other girl doing as she did.

"Harmy? Harmony?"

"Harmony," Maho chided, her voice much sterner and firmer than Tiara's was, and it managed to startle the magenta-haired girl out of her reverie.

"Sorry," Harmony mumbled apologetically. The petite girl straightened a little in her seat — though not by much — trying to tell her hands to stop fiddling around with the twist ties in her hair and stop playing with the blunt-cut ends of her pigtails. It was pretty much a moot point though, as once she managed to get her hands out of her hair and into her lap, she immediately began to fidget with the hem of her denim skirt. "It was nothing," she finally said in response to Tiara's question, "nothing important, anyway. She just wanted to tell me to look forward to coming to school, that's all."

While her best friend seemed to accept her statement at face value, Maho didn't seem to do so as easily, eyeing her sternly with a sapphire blue gaze as the silver-haired princess lowered her sunglasses. Still, Maho said nothing about the lie that Harmony had told, probably just choosing to not pry.

As if sensing that the magenta-haired girl needed a reprieve from the sudden lull in conversation, Naida pulled away from where she'd been sitting in the corner with Raven and Lilliana, walking over with a smile as Acquanetta flitted around her head. "So, we're off to Eraklyon," she said with an exuberant smile, plopping right down in the seat beside Maho and opposite Tiara. "Any of you girls been there before? I hear it's a great place in summer."

Harmony shook her head, as did Tiara moments later. She doubted that either of them had ever been away from Zenith or Melody, as the case was for her now, for more than half an hour. This was the first time she'd left Melody since she had moved from Zenith — the only time she'd left the planet where she was born — if she recalled correctly. She hadn't had much of a chance to travel since her parents had been busy with the kingdom since they'd taken over the reins from the ex-Princess Galatea.

Not like Harmony would blame her mother or father for being busy. It was a hard job running the kingdom as it was and neither had been of noble birth before Galatea had practically foisted the job onto them. It was a rather short-sighted decision in the long run, but help from noble families and advisers had made things work, even if it wasn't very smoothly. The toll the neverending job of taking care of the kingdom was starting to show its effects on her parents' relationship too, and with whatever that had happened that day, it was doubtful that she wouldn't have to hear them argue once they arrived safely home.

She snapped herself back out from her musings again, just in time to hear Maho's affirmation.

"I've been there before," the silver-haired princess of Solaria said with a nod. "Mother brought me there around four or five years ago for some kind of festival they were holding around the time of the Winter Solstice. Eraklyon isn't anything I've never seen before, but it's got it's own sort of charm, especially the countryside." She leaned back in her seat, lowering her sunglasses over her eyes. "But it's run successfully, that's for sure. Infrastructure is great, and I'm looking towards it to help develop Solaria once I take the throne myself."

"Ooh, sounds interesting," Naida joked as she leaned over, resting her elbows on her lap as she glanced over at Maho. "All that talk has never made much sense in my head, but you know what has? History. Eraklyon's got a great one for producing all sorts of great heroes. The house Bellator — that's Eraklyon's ruling family — even has a heroic name! Every single heir of that house has been a Red Fountain Specialist or an Alfea-graduated fairy, you know? Prestigious and awesome."

Harmony wondered if she would be asked to memorise all of this in the future. It seemed hard and cumbersome, and she wasn't sure how she'd be able to do that. Still, if it was necessary, she didn't suppose she had a choice. Her dark blue eyes shifted over to the corner and locked onto Raven for a while before she looked away. She supposed she could start memorising things now, starting with the black sheep of the house of heroes.

If Aunt Bloom and Uncle Sky really did end up passing the throne to their daughter, there'd be a first for both kingdoms. A witch as ruler — it was ridiculous. Everyone knew that witches weren't good people, that they were petty and terrible and made bad monarchs. Harmony didn't know much history aside from that of Zenith and Melody, but she did know that Domino had always been ruled by fairies. No witch had ever been able to rightfully possess the Dragon's Flame, but she supposed that there was always a time for firsts.

Speaking of firsts, what about being a fairy and a Specialist at the same time? Now that was a question she had to ask herself. Harmony was more than certain that she wanted to be a fairy, to follow in her mother's footsteps and become the next Guardian Fairy of Melody, to have a group of close-knit, like-minded friends to protect Magix from evils like the Winx Club had done. At the same time, though, how her parents were tearing their relationship apart with the tension of ruling was eating away at her.

Melody's monarchy was patriarchal, but the bloodline was matriarchal in nature. They had a King and a Queen, not a Queen and Prince Consort, but only the Queen's kin could inherit, and only if the heir was female.

Harmony sometimes felt like Galatea abdicated the throne to her mother because one, her mother was a Winx Club member, two, her mother was the Guardian Fairy of Melody, and three, she had a daughter. She'd overheard the discussion — the ex-Princess had brought up Harmony _repeatedly_ during it. Maybe if she had been born a boy like her father had wanted, this wouldn't have happened?

She hadn't been joking when she'd told Headmistress Faragonda that either. Her father really had wanted a son. She'd been thinking of going to Red Fountain and following in his footsteps in becoming a Specialist so she could make her volatile dad happy for once despite that fact that she was a girl. There were a ton of schools for heroes in Magix, sure but Red Fountain was special in that it had been the same one her father had graduated from, but the problem there was that it was near exclusively male.

Female Specialists weren't unheard of — Pendragon Academy for Girls and Murakami Girls' Institute were two schools that specifically trained female Specialists — but they were rarely found on the field like their male counterparts. Red Fountain didn't discriminate between gender when it came to application, but their entrance exam was also notoriously tough and geared towards males. Even then, it was a prestigious achievement to be accepted into the school and the number of females it had trained since founding could be counted on one hand with fingers still remaining.

Harmony knew that if she managed to get herself in Red Fountain, she wouldn't have much time to be a fairy either, but she didn't want to choose. Not like this, anyway. Both were really important to her, but they seemed to be mutually exclusive.

"Harm? Harmony?" Tiara snapped her fingers in front of Harmony's face, once more bringing the petite girl back from her musings. "Hey, you alright?" she asked, concerned. "You've been spacing out a lot since you got here, you know." Her best friend reached over to feel her forehead.

Harmony flushed slightly in embarrassment. "Sorry, Tia," she said sheepishly. "I've just got a lot on my mind, you know? It's been a busy day." She'd have to leave the Specialist-Fairy debate for another day, it seemed. She'd just keep spacing out until she came to a conclusion. She didn't get to spend much time with Tiara these days, so she supposed that she'd better enjoy herself. "Uh, where were we?"

"Eraklyon's countryside, I think," Tiara said, scratching her head.

"Right," Maho said, "now, like I was saying..."

Harmony just sat back and listened, a small smile on her face.


	11. Ambush

Lilliana had spent most of the trip from Alfea to Eraklyon in moderate silence, with special emphasis on the phrase 'moderate silence', as she'd asked the occasional question to a silent Raven, who had answered and asked them back in kind. Neither had built off each other's questions or anything that would facilitate an ongoing conversation, so even for the introverted blue-haired girl, there had been uncomfortable stretches of silence in between each of the simple, non-invading ice-breaker questions that had been asked between them. At least Lilliana had discovered that she and Raven held a few things in common, though not much that they could share, with a love for classical music being one of them.

Still, that wasn't to say that they weren't getting along, as hesitantly as the fifteen-year-old girl would apply the term to her 'relationship' to the strawberry blonde. She wasn't sure that they were friends just yet — probably not, Lilliana told herself, since she was a pretty weird girl as it was, not to mention how little Raven seemed to want friends — but Raven seemed to like her presence around.

That was a lot better than she could say about how the daughter of Aunt Bloom had treated Maho and Harmony — somewhat unfairly, of course, if the girl had a say in it, but she probably didn't now, did she? She'd continue trying to get the strawberry blonde to act a little nicer, of course, but she had a feeling that it would take some time and Lilliana wasn't sure if she had that time on hand. Going halfway on something was always likely to make sure it ended up shelved, like the half a dozen portraits she had at home, stored away in her closet.

Lilliana swore that she'd finish them one day... just not right now.

The ship touched down in the large palace courtyard belonging to the golden palace of Eraklyon's royal family, the large building glittering under the sunlight as if it were actually constructed out of gold. A short feeling of turbulence preceded the otherwise smooth landing by the pilot, the king of Eraklyon himself if they hadn't changed pilots on the flight back. A soft sound of something metallic being unfolded indicated that the landing ramp for the passengers inside the ship had been lowered to the ground to let everyone on board dismount.

Lilliana was one of the last to leave the ship, with everyone else save Naida and Raven having exited the back area of the ship to the exit as soon as they were clear to land, and as such, as she approached the ramp a few steps behind the Crown Princess of Andros, she caught the tail end of a conversation between the redheaded Queen of Erakylon and her daughter.

"—forbidden from going up to your room until the day is over or until your father and I say otherwise. Don't think you're not in trouble for that stunt you pulled back at Alfea, Raven," Aunt Bloom said sternly towards her daughter.

Raven glared almost sullenly at the woman, a silent, piercing glower that looked like the queen had just killed her cat, not literally, of course — Lilliana wasn't sure if the girl had a pet — and pursed her lips together into a thin line, her single visible eye narrowing. Her upper lip curled into a snarl and she looked as if she wanted to say something, but evidently, the strawberry blonde thought better of it, as she merely pushed her way past the veteran fairy without so much of an apology, which didn't do much for Aunt Bloom's mood.

The black-clad girl stuck out like a sore thumb among the pastel-wearing teens even as she walked past the stiff-backed Eraklyonian guards garbed in a classically charming blue and white, already looking like a witch among Specialists and fairies without even attending Cloud Tower yet.

Still, would that be so bad if she followed through on her 'threat' to her mother?

Lilliana didn't think so, really. Witches were people too, like her mother always said. Her parents had always told her that she had to treat everyone equally, even if they looked different — even if they _were_ different. _Even those who look evil can be good, Lilliana. They're not all bad people,_ she remembered her mother saying to her once. It was an idea that both sides of her family agreed on wholeheartedly, both her mother's side and her fathers — no one was evil just because they weren't the same.

_Different is neither good nor bad, but it's certainly not the same,_ the dark blue-haired girl mused silently, tilting her head to a side as she followed after the strawberry blonde on her way to join the other girls. She supposed that was why she had decided to speak with the prickly girl, though not without prior engagement from Naida, who she was rapidly coming to like as well — though as Lilliana liked pretty much everyone, that wasn't saying too much. She took after her mother in that aspect, so her father liked to say.

As she caught up with the group of girls at the entrance to Eraklyon's grand palace, she overheard a few snippets of a conversation between the children of the Winx Club on what to do now that they had arrived at their destination. Lilliana drew closer to the group of girls somewhat shyly, her dark green eyes darting over to their parents first, who were standing together at the French double doors that led inside the golden palace. She watched her father leave with the other men in the group along with the king, engrossed in some sort of discussion that she couldn't hear, while the Winx Club's six members stayed where they were, near their daughters.

"Girls, if you want to explore the towns outside or the castle, you can do so at your own leisure," Aunt Bloom was saying when Lilliana slowed to a stop next to Naida, "but please do take some guards with you just in case if you decide to go out into the town. Safety precautions, I'm sure you all understand, girls. Am I clear?"

Aunt Stella stepped forward and rested a slender hand on her best friend's shoulder. "That'll just draw more attention to them, B," the blonde queen of Solaria interjected. "Maho's only made her public appearances on Solaria and I've made sure not to let pictures out, and you know royal policy — no public appearances until their sixteen birthday. They can go incognito. I'm sure nothing is going to happen." The blonde interrupted again as soon as the redhead turned around to speak up, saying, "And I'm very _certain_ that our girls can protect themselves even if they encounter any trouble."

Lilliana's own mother nodded in agreement despite only being nobility. She hadn't let Lilliana anywhere out in public officially either. "Stella's right, Bloom," she said gently and convincingly. "I'm sure that nothing is going to happen. If people catch sight of the Erakylon Royal Guard, the Solarian Sun Guard or even my own Rose Knights shadowing a group of young teen girls, it'll cause a scandal at best."

The other members of the Winx Club voiced their agreement with the Queen of Solaria and Linphea's Grand Duchess before Aunt Bloom sighed, giving in. "Alright," she relented, her tense form relaxing just a smidge, "but be sure to return back to the palace before the sun sets, girls, and if there's trouble, all of you run straight back to the palace, immediately, am I clear?" she said sternly, her voice making it clear that she would brook no argument. There was little question on why this woman had become the leader of the Winx Club, and to this day, even without the Dragon's Flame inside her, was still one of the most powerful and feared women in the entirety of Magix.

Maho tossed her shoulder-length silver hair over her shoulder, a feat that Lilliana thought was quite impressive seeing as her hair was barely long enough to pull the action off. "You don't have to worry, Aunt Bloom," she said confidently, raising her sunglasses and resting them on her head so that everyone could see her sapphire blue eyes. A small smile pulled at the corners of her lips. "I'll be sure to keep an eye out for trouble. You can count on me." As the oldest in the group, it seemed as if she was automatically falling into the role of the girls' leader, unlike the Solarian Princess' mother. The confidence that Maho exuded in waves certainly helped with her natural aura of leadership, too.

Aunt Stella gently patted her daughter on the shoulder and turned to loop an arm around Aunt Bloom's shoulders, leading her best friend inside the Eraklyon royal palace while striking up an enthusiastic conversation about something fashion-related with the entirely of the Winx Club, her high soprano voice easy to hear even as the women made their way inside after their husbands had long gone through the French double doors.

"So, we're visiting the town then?" Tiara asked once the Winx Club was out of their line of sight. She smoothed a hand through her orange-brown hair, pushing her bangs out of the way of her cyan eyes. Bouncing on her heels, the girl was already exchanging glances and excited grins with Harmony, who was next to her and looked equally as excited to be there. "Ooh, this is going to be so much fun! I need to get something for 'ssandra too," she said with a beaming smile.

Naida was beaming too as she let her pixie flutter over to her head from her cupped hands. "I think that's a great idea," she agreed readily, grinning at the statement. "I've never been to Eraklyon before, and if we end up coming here again, we'll probably be seeing a lot of the palace then. Besides, we'll be back later on, so plenty of time to explore!" She made a gesture toward the doors to the entrance of the palace, then made a sweeping gesture towards the gates leading to the town nearby. "So why no go and see everything else while we can?"

The girls didn't seem to want to argue with that logic, and free of guards — much to Lilliana's relief, that included the helicopter-like Linphean Rose Knights, her parents' personal security detail that had nearly suffocated her since her childhood — they set off into the town that surrounded Eraklyon's golden palace, slipping out unnoticed by everyone in the town and effortlessly joining the people in the crowd.

They were walking along the streets of a busy shopping area before too long. Maho had taken up the front of the group, looking around and window-shopping, while Raven and Lilliana were lagging behind. The others were varied in where they were, Harmony and Tiara practically bouncing from store to store, checking out tourist souvenirs and sweets stores, while Naida and Acquanetta seemed to like taking her time to chat with various vendors that had set up stall.

Lilliana was just passing a florist's when she stopped, looking through the store's glass window to see a vase placed on the counter, containing a single daffodil in a bouquet of roses. Ordinarily, most people would have ignored that tiny little detail and simply regard it as a design of the bouquet, but Lilliana's intuition told her otherwise, and her intuition was never wrong. A bouquet of daffodils meant joy and happiness, but one alone meant misfortune... oh, oh no.

_"Get down!"_ the blue-haired girl shrieked, her voice rising unnaturally loud.

No sooner did the words leave her mouth did the crisp sound of glass shattering reach her ears as the windows of a nearby tall building proceeded to shatter on top of the girls, raining down shards of glass down onto the streets below, causing a mass panic to happen.

Lilliana cried out in surprise as she was tackled to the ground and off to the side, the girl squeezing her eyes tightly shut as chaos exploded around her. Possiblities and questions raced through her mind — what had just happened? Was everyone alright? It was just an accident, just someone being careless, right? — but none of her more pressing questions was answered. The girl felt someone shake her shoulder and she cracked open a green eye with a shaky gasp to see Raven over her, the other girl looking around with a wide-eyed gaze.

Raven grimaced as she moved off Lilliana, most likely being the one who had tackled the Linphean girl. She rolled her shoulder with a grimace as she got to her feet, though from what Lilliana could see, she hadn't injured it when she had gotten the two girls down to the ground. "Alright?" she asked the dark blue-haired girl, her voice low and uneasy as she extended a hand to Lilliana to help the girl up. "Is everyone alright?" she shouted, her voice rising amidst the still chaotic scene. She didn't get a response other than the still chaotic screams as people got themselves together.

Lilliana grasped her hand and slowly rose to her feet, a hand clasped tightly to her heart as it raced in her chest. She just hoped the other girls were alright.

* * *

_"Get down!"_

The uncharacteristic shriek from Lilliana, the quietest, shyest girl Tiara had ever had the pleasure of meeting, piercing through the girl's thought about purchasing the cute rainbow phone charm she and Harmony had been eyeing from the window of a cutesy pastel store. The cyan-eyed girl looked up running a hand through her hair to push her bangs out of her eyes for the moment in the confusion. "Huh? Wha—?"

"Waxing Moon Shield!" Maho suddenly shouted, the princess summoning her silver moon stave and slamming it down into the ground in the centre of the girls — most of them, anyway, but Tiara hadn't noticed that. A shimmering, gossamer-thin barrier of silver light sprung up from the stave and enveloped the girls in a dome-shaped shield just in time, as a hail of glass shards rained down from above, the broken windows of a building emptying the contents of what had used to be present in their glass panes downwards. The shield deflected all of them and protected the four girls inside from harm.

Harmony sidled up to Tiara, the petite girl instinctively checking her friend for harm to her person as she raised her arms to cover her head. She scrambled down, glancing up only to flinch as a shard of glass shot down over her magenta head, being bounced off by the glowing shield just in time to avoid hurting any of the girls. "Heck is that?" she whisper-shouted, her navy eyes wide. She yelped, cringing as the barrier suddenly flickered, but it held up for long enough to shield them from the last of the glass shards.

The dome-shaped barrier shook once before it finally gave way, disappearing in a burst of silver light into Maho's stave, which vanished as well and left the silver-haired girl without anything to support her. She staggered forward, groaning as she rubbed her temples. "Ow, my head," she grumbled, lowering her sunglasses back onto the bridge of her nose. She slowly straightened, a hand on her head, still standing though her legs were shaky.

"Maho! Are you alright?" Naida shouted, hurrying over to the older girl's side to help her stand upright. She kept a hand on the silver-haired girl's back as she helped the Solarian princess straighten up.

As Maho replied to the dark brunette in a faint tone, leaning on the Androsi princess' shoulder, Tiara got to her feet somewhat shakily, looking around in the chaos as she helped Harmony to her feet. "What just happened?" the bright brunette girl asked, running a hand through her hair — her tell for whenever she was nervous or antsy, her mother had mentioned once. Movement out of the corner of her eye drew her attention, and the girl gasped as she spied someone making a break for it, shoving their way through the crowd.

"She's got to be behind this!" Harmony cried out, having seen the same thing as her best friend, and before Tiara could caution her closest friend against it, the magenta-haired girl tore after the retreating form of a lime green-haired girl like a heat-seeking missile, taking advantage of her agility and speed that came from her smaller, petite size.

"Harm, wait up!" the fourteen-year-old cried out as she began to give chase, stumbling over her own feet as she found herself struggling to catch up to her petite friend, especially even though she had a wider stride than the short girl. She heard footsteps behind her and turned her head to the side, just in time to see Naida pursuing their unknown escapee.

Naida quickly overtook Tiara as the brunette began pushing herself to catch up before she lost the group in the crowd even as her lungs started burning. Tiara had never been very athletic — it hadn't been necessary back in Zenith, so she'd neglected to focus too much on the physical, which was now clearly a mistake at this point. She pushed herself, gasping for breath even as she weaved through the crowd, that was quickly starting to part around the fleeing girl and the group that pursued her.

It was after what felt like an eternity — to Tiara — when the trio of girls rounded a sharp corner as the green-haired girl scrambled into an alleyway, managing to corner the fleeing girl into a dead end, all four of the girls breathing heavily even as the green-haired girl — clad in deep blue and black — took a few steps back into a brick wall and gave them a glare.

The short green-haired girl — probably a witch, from the style of her clothes — pushed back her choppily-cut lime green hair as she gave the trio of girls an angry glower with harsh amber eyes. A sneer curled her green-tinted lips as the Gothic-looking girl pressed her hands against the brick wall to no avail. Her amber eyes snapped back to the wall in what seemed to be frustration before she turned right back to the trio of fairies-to-be, a firm scowl on her face. Her gloved hands raised up to form a loose and sloppy fighting stance.

"Why are you running?"

"You did that, didn't you?"

Naida and Harmony made their demands at the same time, both assuming a rather defensive position, the former poised to fall back at any moment, while the latter seemed ready to spring forward to deliver a hit like a boxing glove on a spring from those cartoons Tiara watched in secret. Tiara herself just leaned on the wall of the alleyway, gasping for breath even as her cyan eyes locked firmly on the green-haired witch, the unathletic girl trying to catch her breath before she collapsed from the lack of oxygen.

The witch glared at them, sending goosebumps down Tiara's skin from the venomous look in the amber eyes. Her black-gloved hands raised halfway into the air as if trying to make a move to surrender, before she snapped her fingers, summoning a green crystal bottle to her hands. A sickly green glow enveloped the bottle as it floated in front of her, and the witch snapped her hands out at them with a dark grin. "Poison Fire!" she snarled, hurling sickly-smelling flames at them.

Naida sprung back, her hands reached out to pull both Tiara and Harmony out of the way of the fire and tightly towards her. "'quanetta!" she shrieked, scrunching her features together into a grimace even as Tiara covered her head out of instinct. No sooner had she spoken did a wave of water emerge from nowhere, crashing into the green fire, extinguishing it and absorbing the harsh, toxic smell that was hanging in the air from the scorching tongues of fire. Steam rose into the air from the heat, obscuring everyone's line of sight.

Tiara finally pulled away from Naida to cough and get a breath of fresh air. She waved her hands in the air in front of her to clear away the steam that was stifling her. She didn't want to know if she could breathe in it if the fire was poisoned as the attack name indicated. Her eyes squinted slightly as she looked around. "Harm?" she shouted out, despite already knowing that her best friend was on the other side of Naida. She received a shouted back affirmation, and Tiara let herself sigh in relief.

That still left their assailant, though, and the girl tried to see beyond the steam to see where the green-haired girl had gone. Unsurprisingly, it seemed as she was already gone. Tiara mumbled a very unladylike curse despite how much trouble she would get into if her mother heard her. "She's gone!" she called to the other two girls as the steam rose up into the air, clearing her line of sight and letting her see that her best friend was unharmed. _Thank goodness for Naida_ , she couldn't help but think to herself with a sigh of relief.

Naida smiled at them faintly as she pushed herself off the wall and checking Harmony and Tiara for injuries. "Acquanetta, are you alright?" she called, hurrying over to her pixie, who flew over to her and promptly dropped into Naida's outstretched hands. "Oh, you're definitely not alright," she whispered. "Let's get you back to mum."

"Maybe we should have gone with guards," Harmony groaned as she got to her feet, scratching her head. The girl shook her head, her short, choppy magenta pigtails wild and unkempt after their little adventure. The petite girl slowly walked over to the other two as she rolled her shoulders and neck, slowly flexing her fingers as she reached them. "I'm going to be sore tomorrow morning," she mumbled.

Tiara snorted as the trio of girls — empty-handed — made their way slowly back to the palace. "Never thought I'd hear you say that, Harm. You never liked having guards anywhere near you." The following response she got back made her crack a chuckle.

"Shut up, Tia."


	12. Aftermath

Maho groaned as she tried to cull a mounting headache that was starting to pound away at the inside of her head. The silver-haired girl reached a hand up to her temples, lightly rubbing at them to try and soothe the pain in her head. It had been a really bad idea to use her powers like this in broad daylight where her influence was weakest. She didn't have the moon helping her to supplant her powers to maintain the shield, so she had been forced to draw energy from the sun, basically, the antithesis to her powers. Her only consolation was that she had thought to use the Moon Stave — one half of Solaria's famed sceptre along with the Sun Ring — to support the shield, otherwise she would have probably had passed out cold from the sheer exertion to maintain the shield when it had mattered.

The Solarian princess took a step forward and promptly stumbled a little on her heels as the pristine white boots caught on a stray piece of debris. "Ugh!" She took a very ungraceful spill forward as she lost her balance, light-headed from overtaxing her weakened powers already.

Someone caught her before the princess could introduce her face to the ground in the most undignified manner possible, grabbing onto her arms and pulling her back up to her feet. "Where are the others?" Raven asked quietly as the younger girl looked at her — they were about the same height, though only because Maho was wearing heels — before turning her gaze down the street.

"They went chasing after someone," Maho managed to get out as she groaned.

Raven's brow furrowed together and a frown marred the strawberry blonde's face as she finally let go of Maho's arm, though she was careful to not knock the swaying girl over. "Lilliana," she addressed the dark blue-haired girl that was running up to them, "get Maho back to the palace. I'll go and look for everyone else."

Was she concerned for the others? That would be new, from what Maho had seen. The silver-haired girl felt a tiny bit of respect for the Dominese princess for being willing to help, though. Even if she acted like an uncouth rebel, Raven seemed to have some sort of decency, at least. The normally proud princess didn't object when Lilliana guided Maho's arm around the tanned girl's shoulder, choosing to instead lean on Lilliana instead to try and rest her body. "I'll let them know," she said quietly to Raven, who nodded and went off down the street.

The dark blue-haired girl watched Raven as the girl went into the crowds before Lilliana turned back to Maho. "Are you alright, Maho?" she asked, concern ripe in her tone as she glanced over to the Solarian princess. "I hope you weren't hurt in that attack," she expressed quietly. "Can you walk? Does it hurt anywhere? Is there anything I can do to help?"

The Linphean girl's concern was heartwarming, and Maho found herself smiling faintly as the girl shook her head. "No, no, I'm fine," she assured gently, patting Lilliana's shoulder with the hand that was looped across the younger girl's shoulders. "Not hurt, just tired from casting that shield. It would have been easier if I had been in my Winx form, but we can't be prepared for everything like that. I don't think the other girls were hurt either, but I can't say for sure since they took off after I let the shield drop." She gave the dark blue-haired girl a light nudge to get her moving and was pleased when the younger fairy listened.

"It's a good thing we haven't gone too far from the palace," Lilliana expressed softly as she slowly made her way through the chaotic scene, pausing once or twice to help Maho adjust her stance. "Easy there, Maho. Don't push yourself too much. You must be very tired after all that." The green-eyed girl wrapped her other arm around Maho's waist to help the other girl walk better. "Careful."

Maho almost chuckled at her gentle chiding. It was almost like her mother did, and let it never be said that Queen Stella Celine Solaria was not a mother hen. "I will, I will," she reassured the girl in the same voice she used with her mother whenever the Solarian Queen started her mother henning again, hoping that it would calm the other girl. She was grateful for the support, but she wished that she didn't need it — showing weakness in public was just asking for a disaster to happen. She felt her headache diminish a little as they walked further along the street and into a tree, providing her shade from the direct glare of sunlight. Maho let out a sigh she hadn't known she'd been holding in.

"Do you want to stop, Maho?" Lilliana asked kindly, slowing down to a halt to accommodate the silver-haired girl. "We can rest for a while if you feel like you're taxing yourself."

Maho shook her head as she gently pulled away from the dark blue-haired girl. "I just need a moment or two in the shade to get my energy back," she explained. "Direct sunlight doesn't weaken me too much, but it makes it hard for me to regain my power." Even as she spoke, she was feeling her strength return, allowing her to stand up unaided. Deeming herself capable of walking on her own, the Solarian adjusted her blue jacket and her sunglasses. "By the way, I was meaning to ask — how did you know that something was about to happen just now?" she asked the dark blue-haired girl, who looked a little shyer at being asked a question.

Lilliana brushed a lock of her dark blue hair out of her green eyes as she gave the princess a shy smile. "I have powers of Muse and Earth," she started in a timid voice. "Muse is an area of magic where it strengthens perception, intuition and offers limited clairvoyance, and my powers warn me about things like the... incident... by manifesting warnings I can understand in the physical world around me." Lightly fidgetting with her mid-back-length hair, the Linphean continued, "It showed up earlier as a single daffodil in a bouquet. Daffodils, when placed alone, signal misfortune. It immediately tipped me off to danger."

The silver-haired girl nodded in acceptance of what she had been told. Maho started walking again, delighted to know that she was able to walk smoothly on her heeled boots now. "A form of precognition. Very few fairies and witches have magic like that," Maho noted, impressed by the other girl's abilities. "That's actually very interesting for an ability." She moved to the side on the road to let Lilliana walk next to her until they finally arrived at the massive metal gates of the Eraklyonian Palace.

Stepping right up to one of the three guards that were at attention in front of the golden gates, Maho removed her sunglasses and adopted her princess tone, adjusting her stance to what her mother had taught her. "I am Princess Maho Celeste Solaria," she stated firmly, "please go inform the King and Queen of Erakylon that there has been an incident in town." Despite the way that she had worded it, the fact that Maho had started with identifying herself by title indicated that it was meant as an order, and no one in their right minds would dare to disobey.

One of the guards saluted immediately and left to enter the palace through the gates, while the two guards allowed the girls to pass through inside. As soon as the girls entered, the guards stood even more vigilant at their posts.

"Moonshine!"

"Maho!"

"Lilliana!"

Four voices shouted out three names in unison as the entirety of the famed Winx Club appeared at the entrance to the golden palace with their spouses, Maho's parents practically diving for their only child when they saw her while Aunt Flora and Uncle Helia rushed towards their daughter in a much more dignified manner, though no less concerned. Both sets of parents looked worried sick and anxious as she thoroughly combed over the two girls, looking for injuries.

The queen of Solaria kneeled down in front of her daughter to put her closer to her child, heedless of her orange designer dress getting dirty. Gently, her slender fingers grabbed the girl's face, turning her around and feeling for any injuries. "Are you alright, sweetie?" she asked, fretting already even when her search turned up no injuries. "Are you hurt anywhere, Maho?" Concern was rich in her tone even as she moved her attention down to the girl's shoulders and arms. "Oh, you're scratched, sweetie, here, let me heal it for you..." Her sentiments were quickly echoed by Maho's father as the man joined her in fretting over the well-being of their only child.

"Mother, dad," the silver-haired girl finally interrupted her parents, reaching out to take her mother's elegant hands, giving a small smile to the concerned blonde. "I'm alright, it's fine. Please, you don't need to worry so much. You were the one who said I could take care of myself, after all." She gently squeezed her mother's hands even as her father pulled them both into a tight hug, his relief felt even through the simple embrace. Maho closed her eyes and let a sigh leave her as she melted into her parents' hug, relieved that she had gotten back to them unscathed.

"What happened, girls? Where are the others?" Aunt Bloom asked worriedly as she stepped forward, looking unwilling to interrupt the scene as the parents reassured themselves about the well-being of their children.

"Tiara, Harmony and Naida ran off somewhere to chase someone," Lilliana spoke up softly, clutching the front of her father's shirt tightly as she looked over at the leader of the Winx Club fairies. "Raven is looking for them right now... she told me to help Maho and return back here first. I'm— I'm sure that they're on their way back as we speak... Maho and I took a while to get back... after all..." she trailed off, her voice soft and uncertain.

The redheaded queen of Eraklyon and Domino didn't look convinced by Lilliana's weak statement, her brow pinched together in worry. "I'm going to fly over and look for them," she told her husband firmly in a voice that said she would brook no argument as she made her way down towards the exit.

"Bloom, wait, we don't know what's going on down there—" Uncle Sky was beginning to protest as the blond man walked after her, only to be interrupted by a cry from the other girls as they raced through the gates.

"Mum, dad!" Harmony shouted out, a magenta blur racing over from the gates and jumping straight into the arms of the monarchs of Melody; followed quickly by Tiara, who was panting as she haggardly ran to catch up with her best friend, collapsing into the arms of the Zenithian rulers when she arrived; and finally Naida raced in, holding her pixie in her arms as she rounded up the trio that had gone chasing after who Maho could only presume to be their assailant or a scared civilian fleeing the scene.

The worried parents quickly pulled each of their children aside, assuring themselves that their children had been unharmed in the commotion in the town earlier. Maho's parents, in particular, were being very fussy even after her reassurance that she was fine. The Solarian queen turned to her daughter. "What happened?" she asked, concerned.

Maho turned her gaze towards the gates as she heard footsteps, seeing Raven finally make her way back with a slightly dishevelled appearance, quickly redirecting her attention towards her parents now that all of the six girls were present and accounted for. "We were walking down one of the shopping streets when Lilliana screamed at us to get down," she recounted slowly, pursing her lips together into a grim line. "A window proceeded to break over our heads and rain down shards of glass all over us. I threw up a shield just in time for almost all of us, but Lilliana and Raven were lucky that they were lagging behind, or they would have been too far for me to shield."

The queen of Solaria's brown eyes narrowed at the statement, a frown marring the otherwise beautiful woman's face as she processed what Maho had told her. It wasn't that obvious, but the Fairy of the Shining Sun was incensed. "And the girls had to chase after someone, you say?" Her brow furrowed together, and Queen Stella Solaria scowled. "Someone arranged for all of this to happen," she hissed in a low voice.

The silver-haired Fairy of the Moon nodded silently. "We were targetted," she echoed with an agreeing nod.

Her father looked aghast at the accusation, the brunette man glancing between his wife and daughter. "That's a big accusation, Stel, Moonshine," he said slowly. "You know that Sky and Bloom won't care about this kind of thing normally, but this... this is pretty much an attack on them," he finished slowly. "I'm not sure that's really the case. It could be a coincidence, for all we know!" His hushed whisper-shout drew some attention from the others, but it didn't last for long.

The blonde queen shook her head. "Think, Brandon," she chided gently, not in an unkind manner, "six of the children of the most powerful fairies in Magix, heirs to some of the most important legacies that exist, out walking on the street together, so close that they could be taken out in one fell swoop, and once they're smack under a building, it just so happens to have a window broken and the glass shattered onto their heads? No, Brandon, something's not right about that description, and you know it." She reached out a hand to place on his shoulder. "I know we've been careful about Maho, but I believe that our girl's gotten my point. The girls were targetted."

The king of Solaria groaned, running a hand through his slicked-back brunette hair. "As always, you've got the facts," he grumbled. "I'm so not cut out for this, even after twenty years. I'll have a talk with Sky about this," he said grimly. "If everything's just like you've hypothesized, then there's been a serious breach of security somewhere down along the line, and we need to find the source soon before there's another attempt." He stood up from the crouch he'd assumed to keep close to his wife and child, his expression turning stern.

"And I'll tell Bloom," her mother affirmed, standing up and smoothing out her crumpled dress with a hand and cleaning it off with the other. She joined her husband, pulling herself to her full height. "Between us and the rest of the Winx Club, we'll find the culprit in no time." There was that side of her mother again — the deadly politician that was cunning and cruel, hidden underneath the very real warmth that her mother had as a matter of principle, the usually cheerful and sunny demeanour that she radiated. "Maho, sweetie, join the other girls and go inside, maybe take a shower and relax. It'll be safe inside the castle we'll have our guards stand by inside."

The silver-haired princess nodded in consent as she adjusted her crumpled jacket. "Yes, mother," she agreed softly. "And do be careful, for my sake and dad's," she added, looking at her mother — still an inch or so shorter than the woman because of her mother's stiletto heels — with pleading sapphire eyes into her mother's brown irises.

Her mother laughed delicately, a spark of mischief in brown eyes as she gently smoothed a hand over Maho's hair. "I'm always careful, sweetie," she assured warmly, leaning in to kiss the crown of Maho's head. "It's your father that you should worry about."

"Hey, that's not true!" the man argued even as both he and his wife headed for the other Winx Club girls and their spouses.

Maho smiled faintly as she moved towards the entrance of the palace where the other girls were heading. Her parents would never change.

* * *

Naida couldn't help herself from practically melting into her parents' warm hug, the embrace soothing and reminding her that no matter what was going on, her parents would always shelter and protect her from danger. It was a nice thing to keep in mind after her scare earlier, that there was always a safe haven even if the great Androsi palace was worn down and everything was ruined. The girl almost huffed and whined when her parents finally drew back — first her father, then her mother — and the Androsi royal family stood back, still close to each other but no longer touching.

Relief was written over everyone's faces, even those of the pixies in the family, but it was quickly disrupted when Acquanetta collapsed in Naida's hands with a quiet groan. Almost hastily, Piff flew over from the queen's shoulder to help the younger pixie up, and flew the Pixie of Rivers towards Naida's mother's outstretched hands, letting the two pixies rest in her palms.

"Oh, poor thing," the Androsi queen murmured gently. "What happened to her, Naida?"

"'quanetta put out some kind of poison fire. I think she may have breathed in the fumes, and I'm more than certain that the poison fire didn't do much good for her either," Naida said, concern in her tone as she looked at her bonded pixie, feeling the slight pull of pain from her pixie's discomfort. Her brow knit together and she pursed her lips in worry. She felt hands on both her shoulders, and she looked up to meet her father's stern gaze, the king of Andros concerned but still strict as he always was.

"I'm just glad that you're alright," he told her firmly, making sure that his tone brooked no argument. "You're lucky Acquanetta was there or else you and the girls could have been seriously injured in that attack. Naida, _never_ do anything like that ever again, understand? At least, not until you learn to transform at Alfea College next year." Gently, he moved a hand to cup the side of Naida's face, and the king's expression softened a little. "I understand that you're a strong girl, Nai, but listen to dad this time, yeah?"

The princess of Andros just nodded somewhat numbly, glad that her father was giving her this talk, though it wasn't as if she'd be doing that again — she'd learnt her lesson this time. "I won't, dad," she agreed with a soft sigh, "you don't have to tell me that this time." Certainly not. After narrowly losing her hair to fire and almost risking more in that attack, she felt like it was far too close of a call at this point now to try it again and actually get hurt the next time.

"Go and join the girls, Nai," her mother coaxed, Piff now fluttering around the queen's shoulder. "I'll take a look at Acquanetta with Piff and once we're sure that she's fine, I'll send her over to you later. After what happened earlier today, I'm sure that she could do with a little rest, hmm?" The queen rested a slightly calloused hand on Naida's head and gently ruffled the mass of curls that the girl had inherited from the Fairy of Waves. The woman smiled, pressing her lips to Naida's forehead and ushered her towards the other girls, who were walking towards the entrance of the building.

Naida looked over her shoulder at her parents as they moved to join the rest of the Winx Club and their husbands, and the girl widened her stride to catch up to the other girls. Turning her attention back to the group of girls, she noted the older two of the girls walking together, Raven loosely trailing with them while both Tiara and Harmony walked behind all three, the latter two huddling close and talking all the way. The atmosphere hung somewhat tensely between them, but it seemed to lift just a little as the girls reached the entrance to the palace.

"So, what happened back there?" Naida asked, choosing to cut into the conversation when the tension was no longer weighing down as heavily as it was before. She tried to keep her voice softer, not wanting to raise any alarm even if it was unnecessary. "What was that crystal thing she summoned?"

"Crystal?" Maho inquired, taking the lead as the group was met with a maid, who bowed politely and began leading them to a set of quest quarters so that the group could shower and change — Raven too, which Naida found odd since the strawberry blonde girl technically lived there. "What do you mean?" the silver-haired girl asked, her brow furrowing together.

"The witch we were chasing earlier," Tiara answered, tilting her head to the side as she ran a hand through her bright brunette hair. "She... summoned some sort of a crystal bottle thing." Her hands moved in a vague description. "That's how she used that spell on us, I think." Her voice was uncertain as she slowed to a stop with the other girls in front of a set of doors.

"A Whisperian Crystal."

"A Vacuum."

Both Raven and Maho paused as they were about to say more, ending up having said different things at the same time. They stared at each other for a moment, the blue gazes held unbroken. It was a moment of awkwardness, but Raven seemed to concede to the older of the duo and nodded towards her, motioning for the silver-haired princess to continue on what the Fairy of the Moon had said.

"As I was saying," Maho finally said, adjusting her jacket, which was a little scratched after their encounter earlier, "that was a Vacuum. Those things are also known as Whisperian Crystals because they are crystal bottles created from crystals from the planet Whisperia—" Raven's expression abruptly pinched together, "— and they can only be summoned by senior witches. Good guess." She pursed her lips together. "But that does not answer the biggest question—"

"Why would she attack us?" Harmony cut in, finishing the unspoken question.

Maho nodded. "Yes, precisely that."

Lilliana glanced away as she pushed open the door, twirling a lock of her dark blue hair anxiously around her fingers. "Maybe it was an accident," she offered shyly. "Maybe she didn't mean to do it and was running away to try and avoid getting into trouble." She winced, looking up at the other girls. "I-is that stupid to think?"

"No," Raven murmured absently. "It's possible, but it feels too planned. Your faith in the good of people is admirable, but I don't think that it's the case here."

"She attacked three royals, whether she knew it or not," Naida added after a moment's pause. "Either way, she's going to be in major trouble. That's a real crime in most kingdoms, no matter if it was a willing assault or not."

Tiara raised a hand questioningly like she was a student in a classroom. "Uh... that still doesn't answer the question we've had at hand, though? And she looked a little too young to be a senior witch..." The brunette frowned, her nose wrinkling in confusion. "And if it was planned, how did she know to attack us? How did she know who we were?"

Harmony folded her arms over her chest with a huff. "Probably saw us coming off the ship," she muttered with a curse, getting her a glare from Maho at the choice of language.

Something seemed to click in Raven's mind at that statement, and she immediately jerked upright from where she was leaning against the wall. "That... Whisperian witches grow up around the crystals, they enhance a witch's magic from the offset, so as a result, Whisperian witches learn to summon their Vacuums early. Most other witches aren't equipped to do it, but Whisperians can do it as early as sixteen. And before you ask what the correlation is... there's a Whisperian ambassador team supposedly present in Eraklyon right now for a 'diplomatic visit'."

"Hmm." The Solarian princess narrowed her eyes, looking grim at the statement. "I understand now. I'll ask my parents about this, but for now, let's just all have a quick shower and freshen up. Then, we can meet up in the grand hall later on." She tugged at the collar of her jacket lightly and pulled it off, draping in on the back of a chair. "Heavens know that I could use a bath after all this."

Naida still had her questions, and her mind was preoccupied with wondering why the Whisperians would bother with them. They were just girls, after all. What would they be able to do to the kingdom? Then again, the Androsi girl wasn't even sure that was the purpose they were attacked for. But for the time being, she supposed that taking Maho's suggestion would be ideal. She was smelling like sulphur and she was covered in sweat from the close call.

At least a good shower would make things better in a pinch.


	13. Nighttime Promise

After that eventful afternoon, Raven found dinner to be an almost peaceful affair. Well, as peaceful as it could get with the slight animosity between her and the petite girl on her high horse that didn't like her much at all. That suited the strawberry blonde just fine, though — the feeling was more than mutual from her too. Despite that, it was almost _strange_ to witness the private dining room of the Eraklyonian royal family — which she found herself being forcefully dragged to more often than not when those two people found it prudent to bring her there — filled with people, the round oak table that normally just seated three magically elongated into an oblong shape to seat all eighteen people present, even if some didn't want to be present.

The six members of the Winx Club and their husbands sat together at one end of the long table, the king and queen of Eraklyon at the head of the table and leading a glad conversation about something political or other between the twelve over their meal. On the other end of the table were the six daughters of the famous fairies, having unconsciously arranged themselves in a manner so that they each faced someone else and none had taken the other end of the table. In stark contrast to their parents, the six, almost near strangers that had lived through a hectic day together, were eating silently as they stared at each other.

The atmosphere that hung around the girls' end of the table was almost stifling in the tension that had formed between them. Even so, no one spoke up to break the pregnant silence that hung around the six even when their parents were merrily talking away at the other end of the table. It was clearly making some of them uncomfortable, though, if Lilliana's anxious shifting and ducking her head, as well as Tiara's mute staring around the table indicated anything.

"I think I've had enough of this atmosphere," Naida finally said, the dark-skinned girl seated on Lilliana's right and opposite the Solarian princess. The declaration got Raven's attention well enough as the Androsi princess gently nudged her empty plate away from in front of her. Her voice was kept relatively gentle, but it was enough to draw attention from the other five girls while still being quiet enough to avoid alarming the adults. "The silence is _killing_ me, girls," Naida pushed gently, "for the Dragon's sake, talk. Things won't get any worse if you do."

 _Yeah? Well, things won't get any better either._ Raven placed down her fork, no longer having much of an appetite for the Earth food that had been prepared for dinner. "Hmm."

Lilliana, seated between Raven and Naida, looked up from a mouthful of spaghetti, hastily putting down her fork. She swallowed down her current mouthful, almost bashfully asking, "But isn't that considered bad manners?" The tanned girl blushed a little when every single one of the five girls turned their gazes — all various shades of blue — onto her. "Sorry," she squeaked out, her dark blue hair hanging in her face again as she ducked her head, turning back to her food meekly.

Maho delicately pushed her own empty plate away from in front of her and the silver-haired girl, seated next to Tiara, wiped the corners of her lips with a napkin. "Well, if we're all done, I can go ahead and ask our parents if it would be alright for us all to explore the castle, seeing as we wouldn't want to disrupt their dinner for a tour and we would be otherwise bored." The silver-haired princess looked down the table at the other girls expectantly for their approval of her idea.

There was a short series of nods from Tiara and Harmony on the latter's other side, as well as from Naida and Lilliana. Even Raven found herself nodding somewhat reluctantly — she supposed that she would rather spend her time with the group of girls and have that animosity dealt with than be stuck with the two people that had been responsible for destroying her life.

"Lovely," Maho commented with a smile that looked just too _proper_. "You might all want to finish up the rest of your food if you still feel hungry, then." She pulled out her sunglasses from where they were tucked in her pocket and placed them on her head, perching the silver-rimmed glasses with a practised move of her hands. It was a peculiar habit to have, Raven noted, especially since it was night already and not still daylight hours. "This shouldn't take longer than a few minutes, so wait for my good news." She stood from the table gracefully, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she walked from the end of the table to the head, where her mother was seated beside the redheaded queen of Eraklyon.

Raven sighed shortly, pushing aside her half-finished plate of rice — she doubted her appetite would return that night, and it wasn't like this was new for her either. Her refusal to remotely act civil with the king and queen had left her locked in her own room more than once, after all, and she wasn't denying that that was her fault and hers alone. She pursed her lips together thinly and tried to pull her hair aside from her face. The strawberry blonde locks were held back from the right side of her face with a bobby pin, still kind of wet from her shower earlier, and as much as she preferred keeping her bangs down, wet hair was not pleasant to have in her face.

She'd been told before by her adoptive parents — her real parents to her — that the right side of her face was her tell, being the brow she arched when questioning, the eye she squinted at when focusing and so on. It was a big part of why she liked keeping it hidden — no one could read her with half her face and half her expression hidden.

"That was quick," Tiara piped up as she snuck one last piece of fruit from Harmony's salad, the brunette seeing the Solarian princess return to the group from the head of the table already. "Good news, then?" she asked the Fairy of the Moon hopefully, her cyan eyes peering at the older girl with a slight squint, only to have Maho flip her shoulder-length hair with a victorious smirk — at least, that was what it looked like with her sunglasses on.

Raven took it as the fairy asking if the girls were ready to go, only moments before the silver-haired girl actually asked. "As ready as I'll never be," the strawberry blonde uttered sarcastically as she got up from her seat, itching to remove the metal hairpin that was keeping half of her face from being covered — her hair was going to take the shape of the pin if she kept it up for long enough. Following behind Lilliana, who had just managed to finish her food, the Eraklyonian girl joined the rest of the girls as they left the dining room into a hallway inside the family wing of Eraklyon's palace.

The private family wing was secluded away from all the other areas of the palace, guarded by a security detail that answered to only the royal family, first and foremost to the king and queen. The wing was not too large, but the opulence about the whole thing was undeniable, especially when one saw the marble statues, tapestries woven in fibres of precious metals, and the gold leaf that gilded pillars and arches. Raven found it ostentatious and ridiculously extravagant, but it wasn't like she cared to speak to anyone about it, much less deal with it herself. That was pretty much like the rest of her problems with the palace, she dimly recognized, but then again, she didn't have people to complain to either.

"Well, you're the host," Tiara piped up when all the girls were outside the dining room and in the hallway. "Take us on the official tour?" the brunette said, smiling brightly at the blonde despite her magenta-haired best friend's indignant look.

"You're out of luck. I'm just as much of a stranger here as you are," the strawberry blonde informed dully, turning to walk down the hall with her hands stuffed into the pockets of her jeans. The ruling family lived on both Domino and Eraklyon frequently, but even though the king and queen would go from one kingdom to the other on a regular basis, Raven had found herself inexplicably drawn to the palace of Domino. Perhaps it was the fact that it was quieter — only a dead aunt in a lake who would actually care more than just a superficial amount for her person, after all — in comparison to the busyness of Erakylon, where most of the king and queen's political business was conducted.

But aside from all that, she still felt an odd little pull towards the Palace of Domino for a reason she couldn't place.

_"Come— me — search for— find me."_

Raven stilled in her tracks halfway out of the hallway to the exit, causing a chain reaction as first Naida, then Lilliana crashed straight into her back. The strawberry blonde staggered forward to keep herself on her feet, but she still scanned her surroundings warily as she shot an annoyed glare at the two. Was she the only one who had heard the voice? It seemed as much, as no one else made any indication that they had heard anything. The girl frowned, bracing a hand on her head gently with a grimace. Was she hallucinating?

_"Find me— come to— bearer— my flame!"_

The booming roar of the voice, a low and husky male tone, startled Ravne enough that she physically jumped, turning around with her eyes wide in paranoia. "Where are you?" she yelled, ignoring the concerned looks she was getting from most of the other girls for her sudden outburst. "Come out and face me, coward!" Her hands clenched tightly into fists as she tried to look for the person that had been trying to speak to her.

"Who are you talking to?" Harmony snapped, waving her hands in the air as the petite girl suddenly appeared up and in Raven's face — no easy feat as she was nearly an entire head shorter. Her pale hands were gripping the front of Raven's black jacket to pull her down slightly so the angry glare would be easier to deliver. "No one's here! Or are you going insane?" She snapped her fingers in front of the taller girl's eyes for extra emphasis, gesturing down the empty hall. "Take another look!"

_"Come to me..."_

A faint whisper reached Raven's ears, but the strawberry blonde couldn't tell if it was real or just a figment of her imagination as the other girls seemed to think it was. She inhaled sharply and took a step back from Harmony after roughly yanking her jacket free from the petite girl's grip, resisting the urge to bury her own face in her hands and declare herself a mental case. "I'm hearing things," she grumbled to herself, pulling her pin out of her hair and letting her fringe fall free over her eye. "It's nothing... it's nothing."

She wasn't sure if that was just her trying to be comforting this time.

"Are you alright, Raven?" Lilliana asked softly, a hand resting on the strawberry blonde's shoulder, making the girl in question grimace and flinch away. The blue-haired girl withdrew her hand with a quick and soft apology, proceeding to step away from Raven.

"I'm fine," Raven said quietly, zipping up her open black jacket fully. She jabbed the pin into her sleeve to keep it safe and ran a hand through her bangs to push her hair back in front of the right half of her face. Her lips pursed into a thin line. "It's nothing... but thanks for caring, anyway," she added in a soft voice, the faintest indication of a smile present on her face.

Even as Raven continued to walk, leading the girls out of the private wing and into the empty gardens that were positioned to the side of the royal wing — somewhere outside and a place where she was sure that she could think clearly — she couldn't shake a feeling of deep unease that had settled over her. A burning question blazed through her mind, going unanswered for the rest of her night, no matter how hard she was thinking.

_Who was that voice?_

* * *

The adults' dinner had carried on for quite a while, so when they were finally done and walking out of the palace to collect the six girls, the night sky was a deep velvety blue and the stars were out, blanketing the night sky and twinkling innocently in the moonless sky. The girls had ended up getting closer together towards the entrance of the gardens as the night chill settled over the gardens, seated together on the three benches at the gardens to draw some more heat, though they were choosing to sit with some distance between them nevertheless.

Harmony yawned a little, seated back to back with Tiara as the two girls used their backs to keep them up, for they were both getting rather tired. Seated towards the rightmost side of the entrance, the magenta-haired girl beamed as she pointed to a set of stars high above them. "That's Einer!" she said about the constellation, her navy eyes bright. "Pretty, huh, Tia?" she asked with a mildly sleepy grin. "I know that Zenith doesn't have much in the way of stars, but Melody has lots of them. You really should come to visit me sometime."

"I'm sure we can get that arranged, girls." Uncle Timmy chuckled as his voice came up from behind the girls, startling the two enough for them to stumble a little off the bench. The brunette man smiled at them, adjusting his orange-framed glasses that were just a few shades brighter than the hair that Tiara had inherited from him. "But right now, it's time to go home for all of us."

"Aww," Tiara groaned, huffing as she turned around to see him. "But dad..."

"No 'but's today, Tiara," Harmony's own mother said with a gentle laugh as she strolled up, arm-in-arm with Aunt Tecna. The Melodese queen smiled gently as the two Winx Club fairies walked over to their respective children. "It's getting late, Harmony," she said gently, handing over a red and magenta jacket that Harmony recognized as belonging to her father. "It's a long trip back to Melody and you still have school tomorrow."

Or what passed as school for the commoner girl-turned-princess, anyway. Private tutors and lessons with the Melodese nobility were as close to normal schooling as far as the lords and ladies of her parents' court were concerned, and while her parents had initially wanted to just put her in a public school like they'd both been to before they went to Magix, they had been later convinced otherwise for her safety as the heir to the throne. Luckily for Harmony, her private tutor Miss Blair was in her early twenties and was really nice, always willing to help her out with her 'projects'.

"Alright," Harmony grumbled, taking the proffered jacket with a small smile of gratitude and putting it on, sighing in relief at the warmth it was providing her. "Thanks, mum. Do we really have to go so soon?" she asked, frowning as she puffed out her cheeks in indignation.

"Afraid so," Aunt Tecna said emphatically, "but I'm sure we can get at least a few visits arranged before summer's over, right, Musa?" The pink-haired woman smiled at her best friend, a similar glint in her eyes that Harmony could recall always seeing in Tiara's identical cyan eyes when they were younger, right before the two of them caused a major scene of chaos.

The girls had grown out of the pranking phase when they finally hit ten, so their parents said, but Harmony, on the other hand, wasn't so convinced. She was still pranking people, just setting them up herself.

Despite how little the magenta-haired girl wanted to leave, her mother did have a point, unfortunately enough. Plus, she privately added in her mind, her father got seriously cranky when he didn't clock in his full six hours of sleep each night, and even when he did, he wasn't a morning person in the slightest. The palace had even installed a coffee machine right outside the royal suite just to curb his grumblings in the morning. So, as reluctant as she was, Harmony let her mother usher her out of the gardens towards the courtyard.

Maho and Raven were standing in the centre of the courtyard near a marble fountain when she arrived, and a quick look from the oldest of the six daughters of the Winx slowed Harmony down in her tracks for long enough that Raven could reach out and pull her towards them. The actions proceeded to repeat for Tiara as the brunette walked past them with her mother, and Lilliana and Naida joined them to make six soon, though this time without a need to be pulled into the group.

For a moment, no one said anything as the six daughters of the Winx Club stared at each other in silence, silent, grim expressions unfurling on each of their faces. The tension that hung over them was thick and oppressive as the six girls glanced among each other, and finally, after what seemed like forever, Maho spoke up, shattering the silence.

"Someone's after us, girls," the Solarian princess stated bluntly, earning subtle expressions of surprise from the five other girls.

Somehow, it remained just subtle — none of them was shocked. As the children of the six most powerful fairies in existence, heirs to a great legacy of heroism and apparently bearers of some kind of immense power stemming back to the creation of the entire Magix Dimension. If someone wasn't targeting them at some point — be it the enemies of their parents looking for easy revenge or people trying to extricate their powers — then something was wrong, even if it felt like a leap in logic to come to that conclusion after just one attack.

"Then what are we going to do about it?" Harmony asked, the petite girl bracing her hands on her hips. "We're just kids, you know. Most of us aren't even fairies yet—" and some of them might never be if they were going to continue at this rate, "— and we're in hot water! We should be leaving this to our parents. They'll know what to do, right?"

Raven folded her arms over her chest, a frown on her face as usual. "What happens if they can't resolve it, then?" She tossed her head, pushing her bangs out of the way so both her eyes were in full view, the blue irises deeply narrowed. "If Maho is right, and I do have a feeling that she is, then this matter is likely political in nature. Remember this afternoon? If it was something Whisperia did, making a wrong move would mean trouble."

"War, at the very worst," Naida couldn't help adding in a low tone, a grim look on her face.

Raven hummed, nodding briskly. "A false accusation would be even worse. That means that this has to be dealt with delicately and in some other way."

"By us?" Tiara voiced warily, her brow pinching together with a frown on her face. "Is that right? But Harmy has a point. We're just kids... What can we really do in this case?" Her body language gave away her uncertainty. The shifting of her feet and lowering of her head said more than enough. but the older girls didn't seem to share that sentiment.

"Yeah, we may be kids, but we're only two years away from being fairies, right?" Naida asked, pursing her full lips together in thought. The dark-skinned girl looked more confident in their abilities than any of the girls themselves had been. "Our mothers were saving the world at sixteen, you know. Two years away from us at most and one or less for us at the least. I guess you could say we're kind already qualified to save our own behinds. A little investigative work never hurt anyone."

Lilliana sighed softly, lowering her head. "Well..." she breathed softly in her quiet voice, "maybe starting all over is a good idea. Let's not have today colour our perceptions of each other, alright? If we want to do this, we need to learn to work together, as friends and a team. We can't let prejudices slow us down and make us fight among ourselves." Her suggestion hung in the air, but no one said anything in protest.

Maho smiled, raising her sunglasses — which she was still wearing, even as late as it was — from her sapphire blue eyes as she tossed her silver hair over her shoulders. She extended a hand gracefully into the centre of the circle the six girls had fallen into while speaking, the palm faced down to the ground. "I am Maho Celeste Solaria," she introduced firmly and formally, but it didn't carry the weight of an official introduction, as she had clearly dropped her title.

"Naida Andros," the Androsi princess joined in with a beaming expression. Her bright blue eyes twinkled as Naida placed her hand into the circle, just above Maho's own, and with her other hand, she smoothed her wavy bangs out from her eyes. Her contented expression mirrored the smirk Maho was wearing very confidently.

"My name's Tiara Zenith-Digit," Tiara added to the chain of re-introductions, the brunette running a hand through her fiery hair as she too placed her hand in the pile, over Naida's and Maho's hands. Her best friend glanced over at Harmony with a gentle smile, urging the petite girl to do as she did and make nice with everyone else.

"I'm Lilliana Lisandre," the tanned girl said softly, hesitating only a moment to push her pastel blue bangs out of her green eyes and back into her deep blue hair before she too let her hand fall into the pile. Her smile was soft, but it was clear that she was glad they were taking her suggestion to heart and that everyone was willing to let the events of the day between them, misgivings and all, go.

Harmony hesitated, but there was something about it that pushed her to join in, and she did. "The name's Harmony Melody-Song," she announced cleanly, smoothing a hand through her low magenta pigtails as she pressed her other down palm flat onto the pile, a confident smile on her face despite her worries that this could possibly go terribly south. She glanced over at Raven with a questioning raise of the brow.

Raven glanced at them for a moment longer but after a short pause, her hand was laid on top of Harmony's own as she let her strawberry blonde bangs fall over her blue eyes again, determination burning in her irises like a veritable fire, though one that burned silently and chillingly. "Raven Qui—" she paused, frowning, "—Raven Eraklyon-Domino," she finished with a scowl.

The six girls let their hands drop to their sides in unison and they shared a glance with each other, six pairs of eyes narrowed and focused on their self-assigned mission. They might not have known anything concrete, but if they did know anything, it was that one thing was true — this wasn't over just yet.

They'd get to the bottom of this one way or another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) What are you guys' opinions regarding the last names? Would you rather I stick to the first name formula only or would you all prefer for last names? (This actually has much less impact because of a rule I've made up for the show, but it's something I'd like to know anyway)
> 
> 2) What do you guys think is going on with the girls? Or, more specifically, who is after them?
> 
> 3) Who do you think could be the mysterious voice talking to Raven?


	14. Light Up Alfea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Mae was submitted by a guest, while Lilyana is the property of SilverAuthor01.

"What are you waiting for, ladies? We don't have all day! Hurry up!" A snap of the fingers somehow managed to carry cleanly over the din of excited new students and enthusiastic groups of old friends at Alfea College for fairies, courtesy of one Miss Griselda Halewood, the deputy headmistress of the famed school for young fairies. Twenty-one years after the famous Winx Club girls had graduated and still counting on, the brunette woman had aged rather gracefully and hadn't really changed much at all, aside from a few streaks of grey in her otherwise solid brown bob.

The woman's eyes were as sharp as ever as she stood a few metres away from the entrance to the main block of Alfea's campus, standing with her back ramrod straight beside a table stacked full with papers

Maho was among the crowd of eager young freshmen fairies, her shoulder-length silver hair pulled back into a neat ponytail and her silver-framed sunglasses perched on her nose as usual as the young Solarian princess made her way through the courtyard toward the head disciplinarian. She had just arrived at the fairy school a few minutes ago, and after a farewell with her mother — a very tearful one with the blonde queen sobbing, reluctant to let her only child go, even when they could see each other every day — she was headed to the deputy headmistress and head disciplinarian to register her name.

Unlike most of her peers, who were awed by their presence inside the school for fairies that had produced hundreds of magnificent fairies, Maho was far from being as excited. The events of her summer visit to Eraklyon was still fresh in her mind and despite having kept contact with the other girls across the month, the six of them were no closer to figuring things out than they had been when it had happened. It was frustrating, and quite frankly, infuriating. It still didn't make sense to her.

"First name and planet?" Griselda asked, looking up from her clipboard and up at Maho as the silver-haired girl approached the front of the line where the freshmen were registering with the deputy. "And for goodness' sake, young lady, take those sunglasses off when you go indoors, or you'll blind yourself at some point."

The princess complied with a small smile, chuckling a little as she shifted her glasses to rest them on her head. "I apologise, Miss Griselda," Maho said, her blue eyes bright in amusement. "Maho of Solaria."

The deputy's stern expression softened a little as the older fairy recognised Maho as the child of the Solarian royals. "Ahh, Miss Solaria. How is your mother, might I ask?" Griselda looked down, checking off Maho's name on the printed list of new students. With a flick of the hand, she summoned a set of documents from the pile on the table that was next to her into her hands before she passed it off to the freshman. "Orientation week activities, a school map, and your dorm keys," she elaborated mechanically and automatically like she had been doing the same thing all morning.

"Mother's been well, Miss Griselda," Maho answered with a smile, taking the offered documents and giving them a quick look over to ascertain that all of them were present. "She hopes your age has been treating you well, might I add." She tapped the centre of the map, a flat disk that projected a holograph that was helpfully colour-coordinated, the princess turned her attention onto the teacher again and put the map away, along with the schedule and the provided keys, into a subspace purse.

Griselda smiled thinly, her eyes narrowing behind her thin-framed glasses. "It appears that two decades have not quite mellowed Miss Stella out, I see. Well, you'd best be going out to your dorm, Miss Maho. I do hope that you're not as troublesome as your mother was. And do remember the name rule!" she ordered, proceeding to wave Maho away and turn her attention back to the queue of new students to take registry.

The 'name' rule that had been mentioned was a simple one that dated all the way back to the founding of the three major schools of Magix City — first names only. Inside the schools and often outside as well, students would only identify themselves by their first name. Back when the rule had first been put into place, the intention behind this was to prevent people from pulling rank with their potentially well-known family names, but nowadays it was simply used to enable easy bonding between students, though it did cause some problems quite often.

Using the map to guide herself towards her assigned dorm room, Maho weaved elegantly through new and old students inside the Alfea dorm building to arrive at a six-people suite with a piece of paper posted outside, assigning each girl inside to one of the three rooms within. Her room was printed alongside a girl with the name of Mae, indicating the other girl would be her roommate for the duration of her studies at Alfea.

With that out of the way, Maho entered the dorm to find it already occupied and personalised, which was somewhat bizarre, but not all too perplexing once she thought about it. Alfea usually assigned dorms in a manner that made it so all the girls residing in one unit were of the same age or the same year, at any rate, but more often than not it was impossible to arrange things so perfectly and they would have partially-empty rooms. Whenever that was the case, the school administration proceeded to fill the partially-empty rooms with girls from the other years. It seemed as if Maho had been assigned to one of these rooms.

She wondered if that meant that she and the rest of the girls might end up sharing a dorm.

"Ooh, Wanter, dang it, get back here!" a fairy exclaimed as she burst out of the room to the left of the entrance, hot on the heels of a robotic Australian Shepherd that was mechanically barking as it beelined for Maho. The fairy's flaming orange hair was rather loud and stood out against the pink walls, though the girl's sharp emerald green eyes helped to counteract it somewhat. Just as the robot canine made a leap and bound to get away from her, the redhead leapt forward and brought it down at Maho's feet with a loud whoop. "Hah! Gotcha!" she exclaimed.

"Am I in the wrong dorm?" another girl wondered as she stood in the doorway of the dorm's main room. Her hair was a deeper red shade, closer to a rosewood colour, highlights of reddened peach and the waist-length hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, secured with a tight scrunchie. The newcomer blinked hazel eyes in confusion at the sight — Maho levitating her bags over her head while the fairy with the orange hair was sprawled out on the floor, stomach-down, with her hands wrapped tightly around the belly of a robotic dog.

The fiery-haired girl got to her feet with her dog held tightly to her chest, glaring at the struggling mutt before it seemed to power down. "I don't suppose so. You two are the new girls, right? Maho and Mae?" she asked sheepishly, holding onto her mechanical dog with one hand and running a hand through her bangs. "I'mm Lilyana of Verisilla," she introduced, tossing her head to swing her long braid over her shoulder, "Fairy of Knowledge. It's my senior year starting today, so regretfully, we won't be around each other for too long."

Lilyana glared at her deactivated robot dog, though her eyes softened almost immediately. "This little pooch in my hand here is my dog, Wanter. Built him myself, so his systems can be a little haywire at times. He's a bit of a wanderer and gets really excited when he meets someone new, so I'm really sorry about that," she added as she turned to Maho, offering the silver-haired girl a grin.

Lilyana might have had the same name as Lilliana, but aside from having green eyes, the two girls couldn't have looked any more different. The former was pale whereas the latter had tanned skin. Lilyana had her fiery hair cut into a short, stylish, layered bob while Lilliana's waist0-ength hair was dark and muted. Even their eyes were different — Lilyana's wider eyes being a brighter and more vibrant emerald while Lilliana had a more subdued jade hue to her narrower almond eyes.

"The name's Mae, from Linphea," the rosewood-haired girl said, pushing her ponytailed hair back over her shoulder with a toss of her head, "but you can call me Lee, too. My middle name. I'm the Fairy of Forests." She grinned, running slender fingers with viridian green French tips through jagged bangs that lay neatly above her eyes. "It's nice to meet you. This is my first year, so I'm counting on you to take care of your cute little juniors, yeah?" Hazel eyes twinkled jokingly.

So, this was her roommate.

Maho cordially offered a nod of the head in greeting to her two dormmates. "I am Maho of Solaria, the Fairy of the Moon," she said politely, if not a little formally. "This will be my freshman year as well, so it is nice to know that I'm not the only one who is new to Alfea College." The silver-haired girl dipped her head at the two other girls. "That said, I hope we can get along for the rest of my time here."

Mae's hazel eyes lit up. "You're Maho? My baby Lills' Maho?" she inquired once Lilyana — she insisted that she be called Lily — excused herself with Wanter, mumbling something about needing to take a look at his AI programme. "My cousin told me a lot about you and the other girls. All good things, I promise." Mae grinned at her, her hazel eyes bright with mischief and eagerness as she threw Maho a wink, moving towards their shared room with her own luggage in hand.

Speak about the devil. "Lilliana has a cousin?" Maho asked, levitating her bags into a corner of the dorm room — the one that was closer to the window, though a little further from the exit — once Mae opened the door, quickly claiming that side of the room as hers. The princess ran a hand through her shoulder-length hair, freeing it from the ponytail she'd kept it in the whole morning. She'd grow it out across the year, Maho decided quickly. It was hard to tie up with a tube tie at that length.

"Yeah, through our mothers," Mae said as she hefted her bags onto the other bed, flopping back onto it. She looked rather pleased to have the bed close to the door, which was something Maho was glad of, as it meant there wouldn't be problems. "We don't look alike, do we? Lills takes a lot after Aunt Flora; me, well, I don't know. Mum says I've got her hair, but not much else, and really, mum's hair is much lighter than mine. I'm too tanned, my hair's too dark, and my eyes aren't green enough to look like mum. Anyway... we don't talk about that at home. I'm part of the Koras and that's that." Mae seemed to realise that she might have said too much.

The silver-haired girl silently hummed at that statement, mentally filing it away as an observation she'd have to go back to at one point, and storing it away for later. Summoning the schedule she had been handed by Miss Griselda to her hands, her sapphire eyes raked hurriedly over the timetable printed out on the glossy paper for the freshmen students' orientation week. "We have a welcome speech at twelve," she told her roommate, placing the schedule on her bed as she stood up, adjusting her sunglasses and her jacket. "If we want good seats out of the glaring sun of noon, we should go now if you're already settled in."

The rosewood-haired girl swung herself up from the seat, pulling her legs closer to her body to preserve her modesty as she braced her arms on her knees and lightly adjusting her green and brown tank top and smoothing out her denim jean skirt down to her knees. "Don't like the sun much, do you?" she asked, eyeing Maho's blue star-patterned jacket and her sunglasses. "Of course, I'm not much of a sun-person myself. When the trees get big enough, they give plenty of shade, and I think you know why I'm saying that, considering my powerset and all." She paused, clicking her tongue. "But really, I guess it's not that surprising, is it? You're the Fairy of the Moon, so it's not hard to see why the sun doesn't agree with you."

"I burn easily," Maho added with a shrug as she straightened her jacket. "Not really a good thing, since my home realm possesses two suns, after all, but I make do with what I am given." Making sure her sunglasses were on correctly, the princess nodded her head curtly to the door. "Shall we get going?" she asked, dusting her hands off after making sure that all her thing were in place for the moment.

The rosewood-haired fairy led the way out of their dorm room into the hallways of the dormitory wing of Alfea and along the way to get to the courtyard of the school building. The holographic map that both had was frequently checked as the two young fairies followed closely after each other so the duo wouldn't get lost in the maze of pink and blue hallways inside the college. It was a good thing that the deputy headmistress had handed them the maps, as it would have been hard to navigate through the large school building as new freshmen.

_"You're getting closer, child of my light. Come closer."_

Maho turned her head to a side to follow the voice she heard, thinking that it might have been someone's music player or a conversation, but abruptly, the silver-haired fairy realised that the hallway was almost empty, with students only passing on either end of the long hallway on their way to their respective destinations. Someone probably was on the other side, she decided silently, on the other end of the hallway. She was likely just overthinking things, anyway. Realising that she had slowed down when she had heard the sound, the princess hastened on to catch up with Mae.

As the two freshmen approached the hallway that would take the two of them directly to the school courtyard, Maho noticed something else yet — a marked door on her holographic map yet it wasn't present in the hallway that they had just exited through. The Fairy of the Moon noted to herself that her roommate either didn't notice the missing door or that the other's map didn't possess the strange glitch, which was far more likely a possibility, as the latter girl was counting each door when they passed them in the hallway.

_"Oh, dear girl, you've passed me! Turn back."_

That same voice again, with the same volume? There was really no chance that it was just a coincidence with her, was it?

"Mae, could I bother you to save a seat for me in the shade?" the silver-haired girl asked immediately, something inside her telling her that the voice was worth taking a risk to discover, despite her usually knowing better. Something inside her urged to take the risk and check out the missing door 'glitch' if it really was a glitch at all. "I left something in the dorm and I need to go and get it. It's really important," she stressed firmly at the end, hoping that Mae would let her go without further inquiry into the matter, though she did somewhat feel bad for lying to the girl. In the end, though, it was still the same thing she'd be doing once she took over her mother's political work, which would only be a matter of years.

"Sure, go ahead," the rosewood-haired fairy said cheerfully as she continued on her path, heading on towards the courtyard for the opening orientation. "Try not to get lost, Maho, alright?" The fairy threw a playful wink at the Solarian girl and laughed cheerfully as she continued on, her long ponytail swinging like a pendulum as she walked off. It was barely a matter of moments when the rosewood-coloured hair left Maho's sapphire blue field of sight as the girl turned another corner to lead outside.

Now that Mae was gone, Maho looked at her map, tracing the corridor where the missing doorway was with a finger that lightly ghosted over holograph. Following that path, the silver-haired girl came up to a conspicuously blank wall where the end of a hallway had just been, and Maho would have known, as she had just passed through that entrance not a few minutes ago. No one was around, either, not even the senior students, which made even less sense than the blank wall. This wasn't Cloud Tower, after all. Maho double-checked the map once more — the door was right in front of her according to the map.

_"You're close, dear. Closer."_

Maho pursed her lips together as she invoked her transformation, trying to be prepared for anything before it was sprung onto her without warning. "Maho Magix Winx," she whispered, letting her transformation ripple across her body and replace her casual clothes with her fairy attire, though her boots remained the same, only now glittering. Her wings fluttered warily as the fairy summoned forth the Moon Stave to her hand. The silver-haired girl reached out, her bare hands resting on the wall, and as the pads of her fingers made full contact, the wall _lit up._

An array of lights unfurled itself along the length of the wall, glowing a warm, powerful gold against the pink walls of Alfea College that suddenly paled to a nearly colourless white. Lines scored the blank wall, coalescing in the exact centre of the wall — where Maho's fingers had brushed up against — into a mass of rectangular lines that bore an emblem comprising of two suns against a halo: Solaria's royal coat of arms. Some lines swirled into the shape of a doorknob that proceeded to rise up out of the smooth surface of the drywall when her hand approached again, letting her grip it.

Maho's brows rose up to her hairline in alarm at the sight, but slowly, cautiously, she turned the doorknob and was immediately blinded by the sight that greeted her eyes soon after. Literally. Light blasted her right in her face as her ponytail flapped as if blown by heated gale-force winds that tore past her. The fairy furiously beat her wings to keep her upright against the force of the light, keeping her on her feet, but the harsh blaring of light didn't soften in the slightest.

A snap of the fingers.

The harsh, unabating light dimmed, a softer, welcoming glow reminiscent of the setting sun proceeding to cool off the heated wind that tore past the fairy.

Maho slowly cracked open a blue eye, grimacing at the sudden bright light, staring warily in front of her only to realise that the 'door' in front of her had opened up the wall to reveal a plane of pure light that superimposed itself against Alfea, graduating into the pink and blue building. There was someone standing in front of her, the fairy suddenly realised, and her eyes shot open in sudden recognition and surprise at the person that was currently standing in front of her. "You!" she gasped sharply, her breath catching as she got a closer look at the person in front of her. "You're that woman from Zenith!"

It was, and she hadn't aged a _day_. The blonde woman — Lucerna, Maho could very clearly recall — had her long sunshine hair set free in flowing waves that cascaded down her back in waves of gold, her golden eyes soft and warm and identical to molten gold. Her attire had changed from the initial golden dress, replaced with a flowing Grecian dress that was a pure white, golden accessories adorning her form. A warm golden glow emanated from her being, warm as the sun and just as welcoming. And she was absolutely _gorgeous_ , even though Maho wouldn't say it on a regular basis, and in this case, calling her simply gorgeous even felt like an understatement. The ethereal, regal and otherworldly beauty about the woman was almost ridiculous.

Lucerna smiled warmly at her as the woman — still glowing like Solaria's suns — clasped elegant-looking hands together. "Oh, Maho dear, hello," she greeted warmly, her eyes of molten gold twinkling. "So good to finally see you again, my dear. My, my, the decade has been good for you, I see. You're looking lovely today. I bet you'll grow up to be just as beautiful as your mother one day." She glanced down at Maho's fairy form, an appraising look in her molten gold eyes. "Oh my, you idolise your mother so, hmm? So much that your fairy form resembles her own. Impressive, but oh, I see that you're still wearing my boots! Do they still fit, darling?"

Maho blinked repeatedly at the almost rapid-fire questioning, prompting Lucerna to laugh gently at her, the woman proceeding to take the fairy's hands in her own and gently squeeze. The silver-haired girl tried to speak but found that no sound escaped her, her voice refusing to obey her and say something. It was like her entire being was frozen and locked up.

"Ahh, yes, my bad. This should fix your problem." Lucerna said, reaching out a slender finger forth and lightly tapping Maho in the hollow of her collarbones. A soft glow followed her touch, a rush of warmth flooding in as Lucerna's finger made contact with pale skin, a rush of warmth flooding in as the women lifted her finger.

The Fairy of the Moon gasped, breathing in deeply as her body finally caught up to her will and moved as she wanted it to. "Who are you?" she gasped out, her blue eyes wide as she stared at the woman before her. "What did you call me for? What do you want from me?" The Moon Stave had vanished from her hands at some point during the whole process, but she now summoned it to her hands again, the heirloom now reacting to her undignified panic. Maho inwardly winced at the fact that she had lost her cool.

Lucerna chuckled. "Oh, me, darling?" she asked warmly. "You don't have to worry a single bit. Who I am isn't important at all. What is important, Maho darling, is that I've been searching for you for a very long while now, and you're finally ready. Now close your eyes — this will be bright."

Before the fairy could do or say anything, the woman before her burst into a shower of blindingly brilliant light arrays that forced Maho to squeeze her eyes shut. As her eyes closed, though, the Fairy of the Moon could have sworn that she saw a dragon with scales of blindingly bright light was flying straight towards her.

"—ho? Maho, are you alright?"

Maho blinked a few times as she came back to reality, seeing Mae beside her, the rosewood-haired girl having a hand on Maho's shoulder. "Uh, yes... yes, I'm perfectly fine, Mae. Did I miss something?"

The Linphean girl shook her head. "No, but I came to get you when it was getting closer to the start of the programme. Found you in front of this hallway... oh, and you're in your fairy form, by the way."

"Oh?" So she was. Maho dissolved her transformation in a shower of lights and shook her head, adjusting her sunglasses. "I must have been dreaming. Let's hurry out. We don't want to be late."

As Mae led her out, Maho glanced back, frowning. She didn't notice a golden daffodil pendant appear around her neck before it changed its shape into a silver crescent moon, hanging around her neck from a golden chain.

* * *

Somewhere in Linphea, a charm vanished off Lilliana's charm bracelet as the girl was painting with her father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) Not really a question, but remember how I asked about Lilliana's charm bracelet as well as both the characters Machinosus and Lucerna? I hope you guys have an idea of who they are now. What's your view on who they are now?
> 
> 2) Do you think the 'name' rule makes sense in-universe? Either way, I'm sticking to it for now.
> 
> 3) How do you think the charms from Lilliana's bracelet will factor into the story?


	15. Discoveries

"Is everyone here?" Bloom asked as she glanced over at the door leading to the meeting room inside Domino's palace, where Flora was just walking through the ornate French doors into the room, the Fairy of Nature's now mid-back length brunette hair bouncing in soft waves as Flora walked over to take a seat at the table. Despite the question she had just asked, the redheaded queen made a quick headcount herself, seeing Stella leaning back in her chair at the other end of the table, the blonde's long hair tied back into a prim and proper bun; Musa between Flora and Stella, the Fairy of Music's bunned hair adjusted to let her headphones sit comfortably on her head; Tecna on Stella's other side, the short-haired Zenithian queen patiently wiping her wire-framed spectacles on a cloth; Aisha beside Tecna, the woman's long curls having only recently been trimmed back into a springy bob.

With all six of the famous Winx Club fairies present, the Dominese queen took a seat at the head of the table, in between Aisha and Flora, as the leader of the group of six, well aware now that all the other women had their eyes on her. The redhead pushed a lock of her fiery red curls behind her ear and glanced around the room, her blue eyes sweeping across the table at the group of fairies as she finished the mental headcount with a silent nod to herself. "Let's get started, then," she said softly, her voice easily carrying over the entire room. "Stella?"

The blonde queen of Solaria nodded solemnly and responded, "You got it, B." Stella's immaculate expression smoothed over, sternness colouring her features. Retrieving some magically shrunk folders from her purse, the Fairy of the Shining Sun returned them to their proper size with a flick of her wrist as she laid them flat on the surface of the polished marble table. The six identical folders were then spread out across the surface before Stella began passing them around to each one of the Winx fairies. "This is what I've been able to compile so far on what happened to our girls," she clarified, "and while it's not too much, I'm hoping we can put them to use."

Tecna's brows rose all the way up to her hairline, the queen smoothing a hand through her ever-present pink pixie cut with an exhale. "Not too much?" Astonishment was present in her tone. She held up the folder that was passed to her and turned it on its side, comparing the folder's thickness to her slender wrist. "It's almost three-quarters of my wrist, Stella!" She leafed through the contents of the folder, her eyes widening more behind the thin spectacles perched on her nose. "This is really impressive, Stella. First-hand accounts from over a dozen people, corroborating the girls' story; reports from certified inspectors that work on magical crimes, separately inspecting the broken window incident and having the same results so as to avoid possible bias; even a professor from Solaria's Eclipse Institution examining the situation and describing how the window could have been broken by spells... with all these connections, you should have been a detective."

Flora's green eyes narrowed behind a pair of reading glasses she'd pulled out as she read the reports. "Professor Croix from Eclipse suggests that the spell used could have been the All-Shatter Jinx, which is taught to freshmen students or even younger as recommended by any legitimate school curriculum. That corroborates the girls' story too — the girl they faced looked to be around sixteen, according to Naida. She must have been a freshman student at an Eraklyonian witch institute."

Musa's brow furrowed as she dropped her headphones entirely, which had been perched on her buns precariously until then. "Eraklyon doesn't have witch schools," the queen of Melody pointed out as she leaned in. "Not any official institutions of higher learning, but we all know that both Domino and Eraklyon's only witch schools are their basic magical education. Bad history with witches — remember the Ancestral Witches, girls?"

Everyone in the room winced at the reminder — the two former kings of both kingdoms had been particularly prejudiced after the events that had happened to their children by the hands of some specific witches and had laid down some very stringent rules about witch education that had all but ensured that the higher institutions shut down soon after the laws were enacted.

"Nai mentioned that she and the girls talked about this after it happened. I didn't want to presume anything, since Nai is still so young, after all, but—" here Aisha fixed a momentary glare on Stella that quickly softened, "— she might be hanging out too much with Maho these days. I sat her down for a talk last week about what had gone on, and she gave me a remarkably good rundown on her guesses. It shouldn't have turned out that way since she was so young after all, but—"

"It got political?" Bloom guessed quietly, staring down at the open folder in her hands. She pursed her lips together into a thin line when the dark-skinned woman nodded in agreement at her statement. "Yeah, I thought so. That was what I had figured from when you first told me, Stella." The redhead shook her head with a sigh, pushing her waist-length red hair back. "I found out that Raven was taking out texts on Whisperia from the local library," she said.

Musa nodded, folding slender arms over her chest. "Harmony has been hanging out in the palace library a little often these days," she admitted. "That's so unlike her."

"Tiara has been on her devices a lot recently," Tecna mused. "I always thought that she was just in an inter-web chatroom."

Flora frowned. "Lilliana doesn't usually use her phone much, but I've seen her talking on the phone for an hour every day for this past few weeks."

"The same thing with Nai," Aisha murmured. "I was getting worried about the sudden phone addiction."

"It seems like our girls are trying to figure things out for themselves," Stella said softly as she looked around at the other Winx Club fairies, her hazel eyes narrowed slightly. "They're likely in contact with each other if that's the case with all of them. I was hoping that our kids would be able to live a normal life," she admitted with a hesitant little laugh, "but I guess not everything can go our way, huh, girls?" She shook her head. "Well, either way, we have to take care of this situation... starting from her."

Almost in unison, all the Winx Club fairies turned a page on their folders, zeroing in on the profile picture of a sixteen-year-old girl clipped to the top right of a simple profile. The girl had bright amber eyes, the corners sharp and upturned with a sly grin for a profile picture. Her hair was a bright lime green, longer than her shoulders and the fringe with a somewhat uneven cut. Besides the profile photo, her name was printed: _Barbara Kyle_.

* * *

Lilliana alighted from the shuttle bus she had taken into the heart of Magix City, thanking the bus driver as she descended the steps into the street. The dark blue-haired girl cautiously made her way through the city, hiking her backpack up higher, weaving through the weekend crowd to arrive at a cafe nestled snugly in the corner of the busy city, just settled away from the busyness of the central hub of shopping and entertainment for most of the denizens present in Magix. She checked her phone's chat log for the message Maho had sent her earlier that day with the address of their meeting place, only for the silver-haired girl to appear in front of her as she was glancing down at her phone screen, startling the girl as the older of the two cast her shadow down onto her phone.

The dark blue-haired girl shrieked, clutching her phone close to her chest as she jumped back, gazing with wide jade eyes at the Fairy of the Moon. "Oh, Maho," she finally breathed, her pulse soaring to an all-time high, racing like a train that was running late, and the sound of her blood rushing in her ear was near deafening for a moment. "Ah... you scared me," she murmured with a barely audible sigh of relief, lowering her gaze and releasing her grip on her phone slightly. "Are the others all here yet?"

"Raven just got here—" Maho's blue eyes quickly darted to a table out in front of the cafe, only just under the canopy set out front, where the odd collection of hair colours — strawberry blonde, magenta, vibrant orange-brown, and a darker chocolate brown — indicated the presence of all the other girls, "so yes, all of us are present now that you're here. We might be here for a while, so go and get a drink or something of the sort and join us at the table. Five minutes."

Five minutes later, Lilliana was nursing a cup of steaming chamomile tea as she sat with the other five girls at their shared table, the girls all having arranged themselves in a manner that quickly indicated their preference for one another's presence. As she had expected, Harmony and Tiara, both with glasses of what seemed to be chilled fruit juice in hand, sat together; Naida, on Harmony's other side while Maho was on Tiara's; while Lilliana and Raven sat beside the former and latter respectively, the last two girls seated together. The wafting smell of tea, coffee as well as the baked scent of pastries infused the tense scene for a while, and for a moment, Lilliana was almost reminded of that night's dinner from earlier on in the summer.

This time, though, Maho was the one to break the silence. "Anything this time, girls?" she asked, her brow pinching together while a frown marred the older girl's pretty features. She pressed her lips tightly together when to one responded at first. "A little bird told me that our mothers met last week on Domino. I would presume that they're on our case, or on this one, more precisely." Her index finger tapped the surface of the polished marble tabletop with a ringing 'clack' before her slender fingers continued drumming on the table elegantly.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Tiara murmured softly, the girl glancing aside as she tucked a strand of her bobbed brunette hair behind her ear. "Then we can stop sticking our necks in places where they don't belong, right?" The girl frowned, her thin lips pursing together as if she didn't even believe her own words. Her tone was itself soft and hesitant like she didn't want to say it outright. "After all... we haven't really been able to do anything even after a full month of searching."

That wasn't exactly true, though, for all purposes, it felt like it was. The girls had only been able to dig up more information about Whisperia and its history with any of the seven kingdoms involved if the attack was exposed as a Whisperian-orchestrated event, but little had made any sense for a motivation, for Whisperia either had no connection for trade with the kingdoms or were stated to have ongoing treaties and with fairly good relations. Perhaps the only thing that might have been odd would be the crown princess' relation to the Lady Queen of the Eraklyonian sub-state/region Isis, Diaspro Isis.

Naida averted her gaze to a side as she cupped her hands around a glass of a fruit smoothie, taking an absent sip of her drink. "I dunno," she uttered doubtfully, her brow creasing together as the dark-skinned girl turned her gaze back to the girls around the table. "This doesn't seem right to me. I know that for all purposes and intents, this should end here for us, but I don't feel like it's over. There's something more about this — I don't know what, but... well, I just do. It's been that kind of lingering feeling for me ever since the summer ended, you know? Something just isn't fitting right, especially with what our suspicions are and what we've found so far. I mean, the whole world knows that we exist, if not our names and faces specifically, right? If someone wanted to kill us, they could have had at tons of times when we were growing up. So, why now?"

"I still think that we're overthinking all of this and we should have left it to our mothers," Harmony vocalised with a soft grunt, though the manner of which her brow furrowed together and her lips were pressed so tightly together they were almost white. She sipped her juice sparingly, using the straw to slowly stir the orange juice inside. "And... us sneaking out like this all this time isn't really going to help us much, is it? Our parents are going to be really mad if they know we snuck out not just of home, but out of the kingdoms too." Her navy eyes darted across the table to Maho. "Except yours, I guess. Either way, isn't all of this resolved already?" She grimaced at the statement, acting as if it felt wrong to say what she had.

"It's not over, not yet," Lilliana spoke up softly. She took off her backpack, woven together from rattan, and from inside, she pulled out a sketchbook. She flipped through it, going through recent pages full of innocuous sketches and paintings of plants and animals. Finally, the girl found what she was looking for and she placed the open sketchbook on the surface of the table, folding it to leave the page she was looking for on the top. She slid the sketchbook over towards the centre so every one of the other five girls could see it. "Last night, I saw this girl and... who I think are her parents... Tiara, Harmony, Naida, is she...?"

Naida peered at the simplistic pencil sketch, a messy, monochromatic portrait of a girl with sharp bands and equally sharp eyes, standing in front of a woman with spiked-back hair and a man with cropped hair and a stern facial structure. The shading for both the mother and daughter's hair was identical, signalling similar hair colours, whereas the man's hair was uniquely dark; the same thing was applied with the girl's eyes, though her facial structure seemed to come from the man.

"That's her!" the dark-skinned girl gasped, her blue eyes wide in shock. "Down to those strange bangs of hers."

"Whoa, no way!" Tiara exclaimed. "You saw her last night?"

Lilliana shook her head. "I dreamed of her," the dark blue-haired explained quietly. "I only dreamed of her last night, right after Maho made that conference call to us to arrange our meeting right now. I... usually don't have spontaneous visions like that." Jade green eyes lifted from her tea to the other girls. "It was a sign," she asserted firmly with a nod of the head, confident in her assessment. "Someone told — showed — it to me for a reason. I don't know why, but it is, I'm certain of it. It's... it's not something we should ignore... I mean..." Her voice, which started out strong, almost immediately flagged, softening near the end.

The girls fell silent, and Lilliana began fingering her charm bracelet again, frowning when she came to where a missing charm would have normally hung. The daffodil had vanished a few days ago, and the sudden loss of one of the charms from the six-charm bracelet had been something that had really upset her. She hadn't been able to find it, though, no matter how she had searched for it, so she had just had to let it go in the end, no matter how uneasy she was to know that one of them had vanished into thin air.

"There's one more thing," Maho said. "Raven... what you were saying about those voices that you hear... do they speak to you?" The princess leaned in, the golden dragon pendant on a chain around her neck shining as it caught the light. Did the fairy get a new accessory lately? "Did it ask you to come and find it?"

Raven, who had been silently listening to the conversation the whole time, suddenly tensed up at the question, turning warily to Maho. "Yes," she finally said, her brow furrowing as she pursed her lips together. Her hands tightened around the cup of black coffee she had been nursing the whole time. "Why?" Tentatively, she sipped from her still hot coffee as she glanced over at the silver-haired princess.

"Because..." Maho started in a mildly hushed tone, giving just enough pause to generate an appropriately dramatic effect and get everyone's attention, "... one of them spoke to me." Five pairs of wide eyes seemed to be enough attention, and she continued onwards after, saying, "She — a woman called Lucerna, whom I met as a child — she spoke to me during my first day at Alfea."

"Whoa, hey, there's no way that's true," Harmony protested, but even her normally loud voice — which was remarkably strong coming from such a tiny body —was a little weak. "I can't really say that anymore... can I?" She sighed, looking displeased at that fact. "Okay, fine, I've been hearing a woman's voice too. Passed it off as just someone in the palace. So who's Lucerna?"

Tiara frowned a little. "I've heard a man's voice. I thought it was a servant in the palace, but maybe not."

"Huh... nothing for me," Naida said. "I've been keeping indoors all month and nothing's really spoken to me."

"Me neither," Lilliana murmured.

Waving it all away, Maho directed the conversation back to Harmony's question. "That's the problem, you could say. I don't know who she is, just that she's a very beautiful, ethereal-looking woman; blonde and with golden eyes. Her magic must also be incredibly powerful — she hasn't aged a day since I last saw her when I was six, and not even my mother — not even _our_ mothers — know of a spell to conceal ageing as effectively as she does.

"On it." Tiara was on her device again, undoubtedly scouring the interweb on her phone to search for the name. Tense silence overtook the atmosphere of the table for roughly five minutes as the Zenithian princess looked for a woman — fairy or witch — that fit the description that she had been given by the princess of Solaria. "...nothing...? Huh, it's like she doesn't exist at all!" she exclaimed. "No records of even a person named Lucerna anywhere on the interweb. That's just..."

"Fishy," Naida supplied, and Tiara nodded.

"It's like that name is taboo or something. There's no way that not even one Lucerna exists on all of the interweb logs. Even if it's an alias, something should come up, but..." Tiara trailed off before she proceeded to slide her phone over to Harmony, who glanced at it with wide navy eyes and passed it around.

Lilliana stared quietly at the webpage that Tiara's phone was on, her brow pinching together. "... results not found. N-not even one? That's not even possible... is it?" The error message on the screen still remained inexplicably present no matter how she tried to refresh the page. "That's strange..."

"I'll check the Alfea library. Maybe I can get authorisation from Headmistress Faragonda to access the restricted area," Maho mused quietly, staring at the phone as it was passed down to her. "If we'll find anything, it'll be there." Her fingers drummed gently on the surface of the marble table as she sipped her spiced latte. Almost absently, she reached up her fingers to the lace-hemmed neckline of her white blouse and tugged it lower, putting more emphasis on that golden dragon necklace that hung around her neck.

"...goddess of light..."

The whisper that left Raven was so soft that has Lilliana not been sitting directly next to her and focusing on the younger girl, she would have missed it entirely. The way that the strawberry blonde's sole visible eye was locked firmly on Maho's dragon pendant didn't escape the normally observant Linphean girl.

"...collector... warrior... nymph... naiad..."

"Raven, are you alright?" Lilliana asked, gently shaking the strawberry blonde girl until the younger of the two jerked straight with a gasp. Instinctively, she shifted away Raven's nearly full cup of coffee before the sudden movement would jostle the liquid inside. "You spaced out on us," she added gently in her kindest voice.

Blue eyes stared, unfocused, at Lilliana before the girl snapped back into focus once more. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I seem to be doing that a lot recently, huh?" Raven pursed her lips together into a thin line, her brow furrowing. "Sorry." The repeated mutter of an apology was at a lower tone as she drained her now cooled coffee.

Something was not right here, and even Lilliana was hesitant to just let it slide without mention. However, the girl finally kept silent about it, lowering her head slightly as she stared up at the other girls from beneath her long fringe. "I-I don't know why," the dark blue-haired girl murmured, "but... _things_ happen whenever we're all together. It's like people instinctively know to cause trouble when we're gathered." Her voice progressively grew a little louder as she spoke.

"You said it, sister," Naida agreed. "That's why we've been sticking with conference calls for as long as we have. That one time we decided to meet up on Solaria was interrupted by a fight outside when the cafe owner called someone out of loitering for hours." She paused. "You don't suppose that there were there for _us_ , right?"

Maho pursed her lips. "Maybe. I suppose that it could be the case."

"Well, there's one thing I can say," Tiara offered, drawing everyone's attention. "We're stuck with each other. I don't know about you girls, but I normally wouldn't be risking all of this just to find out who's on my tail, especially not when it's safe inside the palace. _Especially_ not sneak out of my home just to meet people I've barely known for long.

Harmony frowned. "Yeah... I don't know why I'm here either, to say the truth... Dad's pretty strict about me being inside at all time because this is really too dangerous. I've snuck out three times this month alone to try and meet up, and not just out to Aria — it's that crazy cross-realm thing."

Naida hummed in agreement. "Yeah, I can vouch for that."

Lilliana nodded too, seeing Maho and Raven make their individual assents. "It's strange, but... I feel like whenever we're meeting up, there's a strange kind of warmth and completeness... I feel... _drawn_ to you all."

Raven averted her gaze to a side. "Five to one... six of a whole..." she uttered softly and incomprehensibly.

Lilliana reached out to take her sketchbook from the middle of the table when a light breeze blew through, fluttering through the pages and quickly flicking through six watercolour portraits — a vaguely-defined man with crimson hair, garbed in an opera cape; a woman in elaborate armour with tied back black hair; a man with a mop of dark dreadlocks tied back into a ponytail, shells hanging from his hair; a matronly woman loosely braided light brown hair, garbed in a dress of fresh leaves; a man clad head-to-toe in shiny segmented plate armour with pink-violet hair peeking through his helmet; a blonde woman in a long gossamer dress—

"That's her," Maho breathed, her hand shooting out to slam the pages down, leaving it on the page with the blonde woman. Sapphire eyes were wide in disbelief. "That's Lucerna."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) Who do you think 'Barbara Kyle' is, everyone? I guarantee that if you think correctly, you'll be groaning at the terrible reference I've tried to make.
> 
> 2) What are Raven's mumblings going to mean for the girls?
> 
> 3) How do you think Diaspro will factor in here?


	16. Signals from Static

After staring rather uneasily at the six portraits that Lilliana had sketched, Tiara felt a sudden sense of recognition well up deep inside her at the second to last portrait. Which, in retrospect, was quite odd, now that Tiara thought about it, as the girl was more than certain that she had never seen that face with all its harsh angles before. She had never seen the specific set or armour either so that surely couldn't have been what had stirred up her recognition. Well, hadn't her father been working on a new design for the Zenithian Guard armour? Maybe it was that?

The brunette girl frowned briefly at the thought as she squinted at the portrait, trying to find the resemblance to the cyberpunk-ish armour that her father had drawn up, yet still failing to find any points of similarity, much to her frustration. Something still wasn't clicking correctly in her head, no, not at all — everything was just a scrambled mess in her head and it absolutely frustrated her to no end. It was especially grating to find that the answers she needed weren't plastered in some corner of the web, no matter how she tried to search. _Guess mum isn't always right_ , she grumbled sourly in her mind, _the web can't find everything I need after all._

_"_ _That's because you're only looking at the surface code."_

Tiara's bright cyan eyes snapped wide open from the lazy, half-lidded state she had had them in, widening to a magnitude that was almost comical. She was almost a hundred per cent positive that she had heard the same voice that she occasionally heard around the heart of Zenith. She had only ever heard that voice — a man's voice, gruff and deep and often a little condescending — around the heart of the capital city of AC, so why was she hearing it now? She didn't mention it just yet, though, considering the possibility that she had imagined the voice because Maho had just mentioned hearing one.

Frowning a little, the girl toyed around with the words. "Just looking at the surface code," she repeated to herself with a frown. "What does that..."

"Tia? Did you say something?" Harmony asked, the petite girl lightly nudging her with her pale arm.

Four pairs of eyes turned towards the two, and Tiara suddenly felt self-conscious. "Oh, uh... well, the voice talking to me just spoke up again," she ventured warily, guessing that none of the others could hear him after the situation with Raven back in the Eraklyonian palace. "I don't know why since I've never heard it outside of my home. I did just now, though, I'm pretty sure that I did," she asserted firmly. nodding her head quite vigorously.

"Well, what did it say?" Maho inquired, the girl taking off her sunglasses and peering curiously at the younger girl with sapphire blue eyes.

"'He'," Tiara corrected absentmindedly as if she was on autopilot. "He said that... I was only looking at the surface code... whatever he means by that. He always makes those cryptic little comments and never bothers to elaborate to me." She frowned, scratching her head in confusion as she pondered on it. "Surface code, huh...? Well, if he was referring to the interweb... oh!" As if a light bulb had gone off, the girl reached out with a hand and snatched up her mobile phone from the table's surface and she reopened the webpage they had left off on, opening up the source code. Plugging in a keyboard she had brought with her into the phone, she began making edits to the page's code, her nimble fingers dancing across the keyboard rapidly.

Variables were edited and the code was heavily modified to allow Tiara access to the master database. She began to key in various strings of data to change the page she was on, the girl pursing her lips together as she thought about which kind of code to use best. "Okay, so this should take down the data wall that's preventing me from performing a proper search. It'll take down the interweb boundaries I don't have access to so I can search the entire database of information. If I can't find anything on the web, then this might fix the thing— done!" With a final few commands, she closed up the source code page and opened up the search engine, typing in 'Lucerna' before she hit 'search'.

Tiara cracked her knuckles, beaming at her success before clicking away the pop-up ad that showed up almost immediately, going back to reactivate her ad-blocker. The page did not go to search results this time, showing up a page full of static superimposed on a matrix of code numbers. The characters on the webpage immediately reorganised themselves into a short message: _Find me._ There was a short pause, and more letters formed: _This is not a glitch. You have come this far. Look beneath the surface._

"Looks pretty shady to me," Harmony offered, staring over Tiara's shoulder to look at the matrix of code. "This isn't that kooky 'dark web' thingamajig you told me about, right Tia? The thing you told me to never access unless I had your computer skills and could hack like your mum?" she asked, peering curiously at the messages that were composed of constantly shifting characters.

"What? No! I just removed mum's firewall block thing she set on my search engine and rewrote it to access Zenith's Master Database!" Tiara protested. Staring at the words again, she frowned. "Look beneath the surface? I already did that, though." Opening the source code again, this time, she found a message embedded in the page of code: _Watch out._ "What the..." Cyan blue eyes suddenly snapped wide open as the code was added to. "We have to get down!" she cried.

"Get down!" Lilliana screamed at the same time, and no sooner did she say that did all the girls scramble down beneath the rounded table surface, and a blast of electric blue energy shattered the window behind them, raining down glass shards in a nasty little reminder of that day in Eraklyon.

The girls ducked under the table and stayed there, letting the glass shower onto the surface of the round table and seats they had been in only moments previous.

"This is really starting to annoy me," Raven growled, and Harmony was nodded grudgingly in agreement. "Don't split up. You lot were lucky last time around, and there's no way that we can afford it again—" She stopped short, her sharp blue eyes catching sight of something — or rather, some _one_ — from under the table and narrowed into bright blue slits in anger. "It's those three wannabe witches who assaulted me on the first day we met," she hissed angrily in a low tone. "Those three 'Neo-Trix' witches are only serving to provide a bad name for witches."

"I wonder what's the point of Miss Kyle wanting us to do this favour for her," one voice grumbled as pink Mary Jane shoes clacked on the ground past the table to the front of the cafe, crunching over glass shards. "This isn't really doing anything towards our goals, you know, girls?" Her voice was light and rather high-pitched, purposefully sounding cutesy and bubbly.

A pair of electric blue pumps joined the first girl, and a second voice spoke up, "You're just overthinking it, Debs. Barb's just asking a favour from her favourite friends, that's all. I wonder where those pixies are and what they did to her. It's not like Barb to hold such grudges against people, y'know?" The second voice was rougher and raspier like the speaker had a sore throat.

"Suzie, Debbie, stop chatting and get back to work," a third voice scolded, her voice low and smooth. Deep green combat boots heavily clunked down as the final girl walked towards the other two. "Don't forget, Barbara promised us an in with the Royal Guard if we succeeded in this task. Her mother's the Captain and if we can get that ticket in, we're set!"

"Yes Irene," Debbie and Suzie chorused.

Blasts of superheated air followed as the latter of the two began to tear the tables apart with miniature explosions. Miraculously, the large round table the girls were huddled under was somehow untouched in the ensuing chaos, though some others weren't so lucky. People were making a break for it, though the trio of witches did not seem to really care about them. Clearly, they were looking for the girls, from what their conversation hinted at, for some sort of favour asked by a girl called Barbara Kyle.

Maho pursed her lips together into a frown. "I'll just have to stop them there and show them how it's done," she decided in a hushed voice, beginning to slowly move to stand out of the table's cover, only for Naida's hand to shoot out and wrap tightly around her wrist, giving her a sharp tug to keep her under the table. The silver-haired princess gave her a sharp glance as if challenging the Androsi girl to keep her under the table.

"You're the only one who can transform, remember?" Naida hissed softly in reminder. "If you go down, we're defenceless, especially since everyone else is _running_." The dark-haired girl pinned the white and blue-clad girl with a look, which prompted the latter to frown at the reminder. "We, um, we ought to... lay low and call for help first," the Androsi princess finally said after a brief pause, nodding in agreement. "Tiara?"

The brunette nodded at the older girl, pulling out her phone. "On it," she informed the group. "Calling in backup from the Magix authorities hotline. Protocol says... uh, what was it? ... they should be here within five minutes, I think—" She was interrupted by a monotonous ' _The number you are trying to call is currently engaged_ ' message, played over speakerphone to a garishly loud volume. Hastily, Tiara attempted to stifle the sound by covering the speaker with her pink shirt, but it was already too late.

The marble surface of the table was blown clear off, revealing the trio of fashion-victim witches that Maho had defeated to rescue Raven in the Forest a few weeks ago, though clearly, they had cleaned up since then, and now the trio looked less like they had come out of a make-up disaster and more like truly ominous foes, which was only further exaggerated by the manner in which the trio was standing, all three having their arms crossed over their chests with confident and wicked grins on their faces.

The girl that was presumably the leader of the trio, Irene, had her scruffy dirty blonde hair scrunched back into a short ponytail at the nape of her neck, and she was garbed in a sleek-looking faux leather biker jacket that was accented in hues of crystal green, as well as a full set of street clothes in various hues of green. All she was missing was simply a studded helmet and she would have looked fully the part of a biker chick. Her green eyes were highlighted by two jagged green marks of eyeshadow down each side of her face. "My, my, what do we have here?" she asked mockingly.

Debbie, the girl in the middle, was wearing pink all over, clad in an approximation of Lolita fashion, with softer pinks and peaches accentuating a dress with some green patterning. Her magenta hair, streaked with dark green, was in a set of bouncy pigtails on either side of her head, and she was wearing a pair of fingerless gloves. Her bright green eyes gleamed in anticipation as she tilted her head to a side. Pink bows were in her hair and two pink hearts were on each of her cheeks. "It's the group of pixies we were looking for!" she said cheerfully.

The last of the trio, Suzie, had pixie-cut ginger hair and bright green eyes. Her flawless features were accented with electric blue make-up that streaked under her eyes in a swirl pattern, and she was dressed in a punk-rock fashion, all ripped clothes, chains, studs, and all coordinated in shades of blue with green accents. "Hey, I remember them," she commented with a growl, narrowing her eyes. "Especially the silver-haired one." She shifted her position to put her hands on her hips, letting the chains on her belt clink in response.

"Girls, scatter! Maho Magic Winx!" the silver-haired princess shouted as she leapt to her feet, a glow of light enveloping her as she burst out in her fairy form. Summoning the silver stave she had to her hands, the Fairy of the Moon flew into the air. "I'll hold them off until help arrives!" she declared confidently, twirling her stave in her hands as she faced the trio of witches with determination burning in her sapphire eyes. "Go and hide! Well, what are you waiting for? Go!" Her stave glowed and she slammed the weapon down into the air, sending a blast the witches' way. "Tsuki Smash!"

On command, the other five girls left at once, scrambling to their feet and proceeding to make the mad dash towards safety, hastening out to the street towards cover with Naida taking the lead and clearing the way forward so the others could follow. Raven brought up the rear, just a few paces after Tiara to prevent the girl from falling behind too much. Lilliana was being pulled along in front of Tiara, her arm out in front of her by Harmony as the petite girl charged forward behind Naida as if something was nipping at her heels.

As the girls were running for dear life down the street, Raven cast a look over her shoulder, pursing her lips into a frown even as she continued to urge Tiara onwards so that they wouldn't fall behind and possibly get caught by the witches Maho was distracting. She cursed a little, almost stumbling when her feet didn't match up with her movement. "We can't leave her behind!" she hissed, grimacing as the fairy sent another blast at the witches with a yell. "We have to turn back. Those three are here for something specific, and clearly, they've levelled up since I last saw them," she bit out between pants for air.

"Wow, didn't know that you had a sense of honour," Harmony sniped, looking back over her shoulder as she yanked Lilliana along even as the dark blue-haired girl was starting to lag behind. Her comment earned her a scowl for all her trouble, but Harmony's frown said that she was thinking about it more. "But you're right, as much as I hate to admit it..." she grumbled, still following Naida as the five girls headed for an alleyway. "We _have_ to go back and save her! The authorities never get here in time in these movies!"

Naida threw a glare over her shoulder at the statement. "Harmony," she whispered pleadingly over sharp inhales of breath, "please don't jinx us! This way!" Herding the girls down the alleyway, she paused for long enough to let Raven pass through the sudden corner before she too ducked inside, now rounding up the end of the line. "Oh, dang it, Maho, you'd better be alright, girl!" she uttered to herself, shooing the other girls down only to find a dead end, much to everyone's chagrin. "Dead end!"

"The pixies are getting away, girls!" Irene roared from the cafe, sounding a little faint and muffled since it was from some distance, but Suzie audibly gave a shout in response, and the clinking of metal chains suggested that the punk-rock witch was coming after the other five girls, which would be really, really bad.

A superheated blast of energy shot right past the alleyway and impacted a wall, resulting in a shower of bricks and rubble that looked to be incredibly destructive and dangerous. The shower of debris narrowly avoided the corner Naida had plastered herself up against, ending shortly before it managed to spray the girls. The ginger witch ran by, likely not having seen the girls at all, which allowed Tiara to release a breath in relief.

Her relief did not last long, however.

A blast of explosive energy suddenly shot down into the ground of the alleyway, breaking up the dirt floor and throwing all the girls back against the wall with the resulting shockwave.

Tiara groaned in pain as her already sore muscles were further jostled at the rough slam into the brick wall. She had at least had the sense to tuck her head into her chest, though, as she had been told to by Cassie, who had fallen quite constantly when she had first learnt to use roller blades — Tiara still didn't know how to use them — so that she wouldn't hit her head on the brick wall and get a concussion or worse as a result. She dropped to the ground when the force that had thrown her back dissipated, and groaned in pain, rolling over to lie on her back, but her weary cyan eyes widened when Suzie carelessly strolled into her line of sight at the entrance to the alleyway.

"You..." Naida managed to mumble painfully as the older girl stared over. "How did you...?"

The witch grinned, placing her hands on her hips as she stared down at the five girls with an expression of glee. "Now, you didn't really think that I would fall for that old trick, would'ja? It's the oldest trick in the book, kids. Plus, you were shouting pretty loudly even when you were trying to whisper." Suzie shrugged, tilting her head to one side as she walked past Naida to stand a few metres away from Tiara. "Really, I've got nothing personal against you kids. I don't even understand why Barb wants you all gone — you don't really look like you're any threat at all."

Suzie shrugged further, the chains clinking again, rather annoyingly, really, since Tiara's ears were still ringing painfully. "But then again, when a friend asked for a favour, can you really say no? Especially when that friend has the key to what you've wanted for a long, long while?" she mused aloud, collecting an electric blue vortex of energy in her hand. She sighed. "I told Irene that this was going to be bad for Debs," she grumbled. "But I guess there's no backing out now, and since I don't want Debs or Irene seeing this, I'll just have to take care of this for my baby sisters. Say _hasta la vista_ for me, pixies. I promise I'll try to make this quick."

The vortex of energy swirled delicately around in her hand, and spinning around on her heel, she punted the electric blue energy towards the group of girls.

It was instantaneous — one moment there was nothing but an energy blast that was rapidly drawing closer, the next, he was standing there and a hole was in the brick wall where no one was near, having deflected the blast into the wall.

An armoured man was now standing between the witch and Tiara, who was closest to the entrance to the alley with the exception of Naida. Segmented plates of metal shifted about as he turned towards Tiara, a very steampunk-ish aesthetic about his armour with the vague form of a snappily-dressed man in mind. And then he spoke with the exact same gruff voice that Tiara had heard back in Zenith. "Get up, girlie. It's undignified to be lying on the ground like that," he chastised flatly, snapping his fingers. "You're still young — far too young, I think, but my hand has been forced here. You _will_ be ready, even if you aren't. Rise, child!" He threw out an arm to her, and a bright glow followed the action.

Tiara pushed herself up, feeling like she had enough energy to do that, staring with wide eyes as the light engulfed her. The form of a mechanical dragon shifted into reality just before it was about to ram headfirst into her, distorting reality like a digital glitch. Almost instinctively, her cyan blue eyes widened in fear and she cried out, "Tiara Magic Winx!"

A bright light swallowed her up, covering her in warmth and soothing away the soreness she felt. A band of multicoloured light zipped down from the light that engulfed her, diffusing as if going through a prism, and wound itself in her hair, tying it up into a high, shaggy ponytail. Rays of light bent around her, twirling around her body like ribbons, diffusing into the multicoloured spectrum before they tightened and burst into a shower of sparkles, forming her top, shorts and boots. Clouds darkened the light that poured down like water, darkening into storm clouds and lightning flashed behind her, casting a silhouette. With a clap of thunder, a pair of wings appeared on her back and she fluttered them, putting her hands on her hips as she confidently stood up to the witch.

Tiara was now clad in a glittering green set of clothing, with a halterneck top and short that were connected together, two diamond shapes cut open at her midriff and her shoulder blades. She wore knee-high boots, with wedge heels of a darker green. Her wings resembled jagged cloud shapes, and they easily carried her weight despite how proportionally off they seemed to be. The new fairy grinned confidently, and announced, much to the bewilderment of the witch, "Tiara, Fairy of Weather!"

The fairy pointed at Suzie with a determined look in her eyes. "You're going to regret coming after me and my friends!" A jagged bolt of lightning swirled into her bare hands and she pulled back as if she was about to throw it. "Take this! Lightning Bolt!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) Why does Barbara want the girls gone?
> 
> 2) What connection do the Neo-Trix (Irene, Debbie, and Suzie) have to Barbara, for that matter? And while we're on that topic, what roles do you think they will play?
> 
> 3) Who is Barbara Kyle?


	17. Witches and Specialists

"Lightning Bolt!" Tiara shouted, hurling the crackling bolt of lightning in her bare hands like a javelin, pushing all of the force she could muster up in her unathletic body to throw the white bolt towards the frozen Suzie. Her aim was far off-target, though, and the long spear of electricity crashed into the ground inches away from the ginger witch's feet, startling the older of the two out of her reverie. "Uh-oh," the brunette mumbled, letting her wings carry her up into the air as she summoned another crackling projectile to retaliate against a possible counterattack by the witch.

Suzie jumped back preemptively this time, her hands glowing with the electric blue explosive energy that was likely her speciality in magic. The witch's eyes narrowed and she growled menacingly, baring teeth that seemed actually much sharper than they had previously been before. "Oh, has the little pixie grown fangs?" she mocked, though there was some visible trepidation in her body language instead of just a taunt to get the girl riled up. "Look at you — you've grown some wings! I wonder how much effort it'll take to rip 'em off!" With the final snarl, the witch leapt into the air and blasted Tiara, much to the girl's alarm.

Tiara gasped, ducking away from the blast with remarkable ease thanks to her new wings, putting her focus on trying to think of a way to defeat the witch. Her brow furrowed together as she glanced over at the cafe, realising that Maho was still holding the other two witches off, and a light bulb went off in her head. She would just lead Suzie away from the girls so that they could pick themselves up and wait for the help from the Magix authorities! With a burst of renewed confidence now that she had a plan, the fairy blasted the witch again. "Oh yeah?" she shouted, not quite thinking about what she was saying. "I'd like to see you try!" Ducking a blast of hot air that ruffled the end of her shaggy ponytail, she made the mad dash towards the cafe with Suzie hot on her heels.

"Come back you, you insufferable brat!" Suzie yelled, shooting after the fairy with fury in her voice and a scowl of frustration. "You don't get to insult me like that without repercuss— hey!" She was forced to jump aside when another javelin of lightning streaked past her, still wildly off-target but inching steadily closer with each throw of the projectile.

The fairy led the witch back towards the cafe, managing to manoeuvre her right into the path of an energy blast from Maho, which just made the ginger-haired witch shriek and draw the attention of all the three fighters.

"Tiara?" Maho asked in mild astonishment, raising a brow at the brunette, who only smiled sheepishly before squeaking and ducking behind the silver-haired fairy when a few dozen shards of glass were thrown towards her. Thankfully, the Solarian fairy managed to react just in time, raising a shield with the Moon Stave that blocked off most of the shards, letting them drop onto the ground and shatter. "Watch it, you fashion scandal!" she shouted at Irene, who scowled and proceeded to blast her with shards of glass again. "Why are you hiding behind me?" she yelled at Tiara, recasting her shield with a wince. "Attack them!"

The cyan-eyed fairy stared at the slightly older girl for a moment before she realised what was going on. "O-oh, uh, right! Lightning Bolt!" She yelled, throwing the spears of crackling white electricity at the witches again as Maho held up the barrier against Irene's glass showers and debris being thrown at them by Debbie. "The Magix authorities should be here any moment now!" she informed the older fairy as she looked about, hoping to see the appearance of someone to help them. "We just need to hold on for a little longer, I promise!"

"Just keep on throwing bolts at them," Maho instructed with a grunt, keeping the shield up with her weapon. Her sapphire eyes narrowed into slits. "Where are the other girls?" she asked through grit teeth, wincing at the sudden bombardment by Suzie, who was dead set on attacking Tiara after the brunette's taunts. "You didn't leave them somewhere because you can fly now, did you— Up!" Suddenly, the silver-haired girl dropped the shield, grabbing the fairy of weather by the wrist and flying sharply upwards, yanking her right out of the way of an enlarged blast of energy from the ginger witch. "What is wrong with you?" she questioned the witch.

Then, much to Tiara's elation, she heard the squealing sirens of the Magic authorities — which, if she had to be honest, was actually just a fancy name for the trainees of Red Fountain College for Specialists. While there were _actual_ police force members present, they usually handled the paperwork and filing, while the Specialists were in charge of dealing with physical threats, under the supervision of a senior or a graduate. Well, most of the time, at least. Tiara's father had told her that that rule, in particular, was a new one, having just been instated recently.

"They're here!" she yelped to Maho, managing to ease her arm loose from the older girl's tight grip. "Let's go!" Squeaking in surprise as a shard of glass shot through the air, whistling in her ear as it narrowly streaked past her head, courtesy of Irene. Flying through the air — the exhilarating feeling of the wind in her short hair was something she swore she could get used to — the fairy darted across the sky to locate the squad of Specialists that had been dispatched to help them with their situation. Locating the red hoverbikes that the Specialists used, she immediately shot towards them, frantic.

One of the Specialist boys, a brunette with a shaggy skater cut wearing the blue and beige bodysuit of the new trainees, glanced over at her direction as she flew over and immediately snapped to attention, speaking to the man in the blue armour of Specialist graduates, presumably his senior, and proceeded to hasten over to her. "Miss, you alright?" he asked, genuine concern on his face, especially as something struck him — likely the fact that she didn't quite look sixteen. "You're the one who called in for help?"

Tiara nodded vigorously. "Yeah, that's me. Um, let me, uh, make this quick..." She inhaled a deep breath, intending to let it all out in one go. "So these three witches attacked us at Cafe Magica and totally trashed the place, then when my friend stayed behind to distract them, I and the girls ran off to hide, but one of the witches then chased after us and blew us all against an alley, and then tried to blow us all up, but I managed to get her attention and led her away and back to the front of the cafe, but now my friend is holding all three of them off alone and I totally need your help!" she finished, gasping for air when she was done.

"Well, ya heard the lass, Andrew," the supervisor barked to the Specialist she was talking to. "Take the squad and hurry over to help the poor girl and her friends!"

Andrew, the Specialist, saluted, shouting, "Yes, Drake, sir!" Turning towards the others in the five-person group, he nodded towards a boy with platinum blonde hair. "Zach, come with me; Tom, Harry, you guys go and find the other girls she was talking about; Jensen, I want you to find anyone who needs medical help and get them to Captain Drake." He stole a glance at the supervisor, Drake, who nodded with an approving smile, and the boy exhaled in relief. "Alright, miss, lead us to the cafe," he told Tiara, activating his Phantoblade, the weapon glowing with a purple blade.

Anxious to get back to Maho, Tiara flitted over towards the cafe with Zach, the blond, and Andrew, hot in pursuit, both Specialists drawing their weapons to follow her. "Maho!" Tiara yelled, beginning to gather sparking electricity in her ungloved hands as she flew over to join her silver-haired friend. "They're here to help!" Ducking and dodging an explosive blast from Suzie, the brunette fairy let her magic gather in her hands to form the lightning bolt javelin. "Lightning Bolt!" she yelled, retaliating with the spear of electricity.

Irene's green eyes flashed in irritation as she noted the arrival of the two new Specialists. "They called in the Specialists!" she hissed, sounding rather irked as she took a few steps back. "Ugh, forget this, girls! Let's move out — we can come back for those pixies later!" Green energy suddenly began to build around her and with a shrill yell, the neon green aura coalesced around her and exploded outwards in the form of thousands of shards of glass in all directions. The ensuing chaos was enough for all three to take the chance to teleport away and vanish from sight.

"Did you get a lock on them, Zach?" Andrew demanded as soon as the initial wave of glass shards had been deflected away by a few swipes of his Phantoblade. The brunette ran a gloved hand through his sandy brown hair with mild exasperation on his face. "They got away!" He followed up with a mild, but brief curse, only to be elbowed by the blond moments after, who pinned him with a scowl that could have likely rivalled Harmony's father on his worst days. "What?" Andrew asked with a deep frown, holding his side as he made a face at Zach.

Zach scoffed. "Idiot," he grumbled at Andrew. "How do you expect me to get a lock on those three witches when I don't even have the equipment to detect magical traces on me? Jensen has it, unless you've forgotten, and I don't know how to work that piece of new equipment in the slightest!" Deactivating a deep red spear that he had twisted about like a rotor to protect himself from the glass shards, the Specialist affixed the metal part of his weapon on his belt and folded his arms over his chest. "Well, we've found nothing."

Alright, Tiara took it back. This guy was probably just like Harmony's dad, down to the attitude. He just needed a trim of his hair into the spiked back style the king of Melody preferred and that would make him a carbon copy of the surly man.

Maho huffed as she flew down to the ground, staring at the two Specialists, her sapphire gaze briefly locking with Andrew's crystal green eyes before the silver-haired princess released her transformation, a warm shower of silver light engulfing her. Dropping her sunglasses over her eyes and running slender fingers through her hair, the Fairy of the Moon walked over to the duo rather primly. With a hip cocked out slightly and a hand braced on it, she regarded them both almost critically. "Five minutes, was it?" she asked Tiara sceptically. "How long did it take them? Because I know that I took more than five minutes when I was fighting."

The two stared at each other before Zach snickered mockingly, draping an arm over Andrew's shoulder, patting his upper arm almost teasingly. "Yeah, how long was it until you answered Com. Drake's phone call and arrived on the scene, eh, Andy?" His amber eyes glinted in a wicked sense of amusement. "Sorry, ladies. Our captain here, Andrew, took his sweet time answering the distress call. We had to stall a bit because we can't leave without all team members according to protocol." He inclined his head slightly. "But where are my manners? You can call me Zachary. This knucklehead is Andrew."

Andrew just glowered at his friend, though not in a way that said ' _I hate you_ ', just ' _why am I friends with you?_ '. "Zach," he grumbled, scowling. "Oh, alright, fine. It's my fault that I drained my cell battery and couldn't receive Drake's call, okay?" He rolled his eyes before coughing and clearing his throat, straightening up again as he faced the two fairies. "Anyway, back on track. I'm really sorry, ladies. But don't worry, you're safe now. Tom and Harry should be going back to Drake right about now, so your friends should be safe. We'll need to record a statement to hand to the local authorities, but that's all procedure." He offered a charming smile.

Maho did not look amused. "That laxness of yours could get people killed," she shot at Andrew with a frown marring her features. "Do not get me started on how close Tiara and I had come to getting severely injured by those three psychopaths because your phone battery was dead. If any of the girls were hurt because you all were too late in your arrival, I will assure you that our parents will be seeking disciplinary action." She raised her sunglasses to narrow sapphire eyes at Andrew. "I will be speaking to your commander about it as well."

Andrew grimaced, shifting a little. "Uh... right. Sorry, sorry... I really do apologise, Miss. This shouldn't have happened." He frowned at the accusing glare that was being thrown in his direction, though he held his composure remarkably well, all things considered. Plants would have wilted under the glided daggers Maho was glaring at him. "I'll take you ladies over to my commanding officer now. If all things have gone as expected, then your friends should be there, receiving medical attention if necessary; safe and sound if not."

The silver-haired princess scoffed a little, dropping her sunglasses back down onto the bridge of her nose. "They had better," she curtly informed him, reaching over to take Tiara by the arm. "Release your transformation, Tiara, and let's go."

Tiara stared for a moment, cyan eyes locked on the older fairy. "Uh... I don't know how to?" she asked sheepishly, using her free hand to scratch the back of her head rather awkwardly. Now that she was out of the heat of battle, she was abruptly aware of how exposed the outfit made her, though she still tried not to let it show too much. Her jagged wings fluttered a little anxiously as the older girl motioned for Zachary and Andrew to lead the way back, wondering how she would tell her parents later.

The brunette girl winced. Her parents would not be happy with her for sneaking out, even if they would be delighted to know that she had managed to achieve her transformation at her age. "I'm so dead," she groaned quietly as the other girls came into sight, standing around next to the scarlet standard issue hoverbikes used by the Specialists.

"Easy does it," Naida told Lilliana as she tied a bandage around the girl's upper arm. "Don't tense up — this might hurt a little, but just bear with me for a few more seconds... alright." With a little yank on one end, the dark-skinned girl patted her on the shoulder. "There, all done," she told the other girl with a bright smile, pushing her mid-back-length dark brown hair over her shoulder. "Harmony, Raven, you two doing alright with the first-aid stuff?" she called, moving her hands to her hips. "I can lend you two a hand if you need it."

Raven shook her head, though she was fumbling a bit with the splint that Tiara's best friend was holding up to her arm. "I can do this," she insisted in a rather clipped tone as she worked to tie it in place around Harmony's arm. "Hold _still_ , shorty," she hissed when the magenta-haired girl squirmed a little in pain. "Hey! Do you _want_ me to end up exacerbating the injury?" Reaching out to grab the girl by the lower arm, the strawberry blonde huffed, trying to keep Harmony still while she attempted to tie the bandages one-handed.

"Let me," one of the Specialists offered, taking over as she kept Harmony's arm still. In a few quick and efficient moves, he secured the splint to Harmony's arm. Gently, he patted her shoulder. "All done," he told them with a small smile. "Don't jostle it too much, alright?"

Harmony nodded with a sigh, looking like she watched to scratch something, but the moment she saw Tiara and Maho, her eyes lit up and she raced over. "Tia!" she yelled, waving her uninjured arm. "You're alright, thank the Dragon!" Huffing a little as she reached her brunette best friend, the petite girl skidded a little to draw to a sharp stop before she narrowly avoided smacking right into the taller girl. With a beaming smile that could rival the light from the sun, Harmony wrapped one arm around the Fairy of Weather in an awkward hug.

The brunette nodded with a sheepish smile. "Yeah, I'm fine, but you girls got hurt!" she expressed, concern in her tone.

Harmony waved her off with her free hand. "I'll be fine, it's just a tiny little fracture from smacking into the bricks," the girl said. "When I get back home, dad will chew me out for a while, and mum's probably going to ground me, but after that, they'll have a healer fix me right up and then I'll be as right as rain!" Grinning cheerfully despite how she was nursing her arm, the magenta-haired girl analysed Tiara with a scrutinising navy gaze. "Didn't I see you in green and with a pair of wings earlier?" she asked almost accusingly, squinting one eye at Tiara.

The girl just beamed widely. "Yup!" she declared with a grin. "I was, I _was_." With a carefree little giggle, Tiara hugged her best friend back, a grin on her face.

"I'm so proud of you, Tia!"

Maho cleared her throat. "While this is nice, girls, let's just let the Specialists record our statement. Then, we should all call our parents and get back home," she advised. "It'll be better for us after all this that just happened, and I'm sure that a few of us would appreciate getting appropriate medical attention for our injuries." Adjusting her silver-rimmed sunglasses, the silver-haired fairy turned towards Drake, addressing the commander with a clipped, but still somehow polite tone.

Tiara tried not to groan.

Her parents were going to kill her for sneaking out after what happened this time.

* * *

"B, if you're going out, remember to pick up the groceries!" Selina Kyle nee Roth shouted out from her study, hearing the front door of her home creak open slightly. The Earth witch got up from her seat at the mahogany desk and moved towards the exit of her study to poke her head out of the doorframe, her wild, dirty green hair highlighted with blonde pulled back into a manageable bun that suited her 'desk job' identity. Leaving a pair of reading glasses on her desk, she pulled open the door and glanced out of the room to the entrance, where her only child was halfway out the door by now.

The green-haired girl blinked as she turned back, her denim jacket halfway pulled on. "Oh, sure, mum!" she called back. "I'll make sure to deliver them back. I don't think you'll be able to expect me back for dinner, though — I'm going to be out with my friends." Pulling on her cropped jacket and giving it a firm tug to adjust it, the sixteen-year-old flashed her a grin and flipped her waist-length green hair — cut into a sharp curved 'V' shape at the back — over her shoulder. "Um, assuming that's alright?" she asked sheepishly, almost entirely out the door but keeping her head in the house.

Selina chuckled, a hand on her hip as she reached out to ruffle her daughter's hair with the other, messing up the girl's jaggedly-cut bangs. She'd have to supervise next time her child insisted on cutting her own hair, the witch thought briefly — that cut was a little shoddily done. Then again, at her own age, she had done the same thing and had trimmed her hair into the same wild mop she still had to this day, though in a much more voluminous state than it was now. _Ah, the wonders of magic and hairstyling products,_ she thought to herself with a chuckle.

"It's fine, Batsy," she teased gently, smiling when her daughter turned red at the embarrassing nickname, stifling a chuckle for later when the girl had left the house — she didn't want the girl to start fuming at her again, after all, even if it would only be momentary. "You know you could always invite them over for dinner, you know?" Selina asked, a hand on her cocked out hip as she looked at the girl. "I always do worry whenever you eat out."

The girl rolled her eyes in a good-natured manner. "I watch my food, mum," she said with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry — I don't eat things without checking them first, alright?" Pushing open the door inside to kiss Selina on the cheek, the green-haired girl waved goodbye to her as she left the house.

Selina watched from the doorway, her arms folded over her chest, as her daughter rounded the corner, leaving the Witch of Snakes alone in the large house within the Whisperian capital city of Susurria. She lifted her yellow eyes from the affluent neighbourhood to glimpse the imposingly dark palace, all spikes and spires, in the distance. It was roughly a fifteen-minute journey from her home, provided Selina managed to avoid the morning rush hour, which, considering that she got up at 6 a.m. on the dot each morning, was not too much of an issue.

If Eldora had taught Selina anything good — and the fairy had, tons of things, in fact — this was it.

With a lazy little yawn, the Captain of the Whisperian Royal Guard stretched out the kinks in his body and moved towards the study again to finish the paperwork that was starting to pile. She had about four hours until Bruce got home, and then it was time for dinner.

Now, if only Barbara would eat at home more often...

Oh well, Selina decided, shrugging. The phone ringing from her study caught her attention, and she hastened over to answer it. "Hello? You've reached the Kyle residence. Selina speaking," she spoke.

 _"Wait... Selina?"_ a familiar voice came through the line.

Selina's yellow eyes widened a bit in pleasant surprise. "Bloom?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) Now that I've revealed more about Barb, what do you think her motivation might be?
> 
> 2) This chapter introduces two Specialists I'll be using later on in the series; what roles do you think they'll be playing?
> 
> 3) And for the last question, what do you all think about the Specialist exposition I did? Do you think it works?


	18. Pieces Fall Into Place

Barbara whistled a little as she weaved in and out of the mid-morning traffic, waving hello and goodbye to familiar people she recognised and still flashing friendly little smiles to people that she didn't recognise but whom still passed her on their way. Strolling her way through the park, the green-haired girl came to a chain-link fence that surrounded an area that was thick with shrubbery and trees. The girl used the empty spaces where the wires didn't occupy as footholds, climbing up and over the wire fence before performing an elegant gymnastics somersault over the top without catching her fishnet sleeves on the top.

Tumbling to the ground in a roll, Barbara got to her feet and dusted off the green grass stains on her denim jacket. She looked behind her to check if anyone else was following her — an odd move for a girl of her age but a paranoid move that made complete sense for a future Guard member. At least, that was what she was aiming for in the future. Adjusting the cuffs of her jacket sleeves, she walked deeper into the heart of the fenced-off area to arrive at a clearing of grass. The girl snapped her fingers in the air thrice, and the air in front of her rippled before parting like streams of water as she strolled through it.

"Suzanne? Girls, are you back yet?" she queried the empty air as the veil of cloaking magic lifted to reveal a wooden cottage that she had put together with the trio of girls to become their base of operations to fit in with her plans. The girl cracked her neck casually as she entered the building, lighting up the main room with a snap of the fingers, careful to not end up summoning her signature poison flames when she only intended to light up some old lamps Irene had created during their training practice. She smiled a little — even if they were just her pawns for the moment, she was still proud of their progress, and she fully intended to hold onto her promises made.

"Barb!" yelled the oldest of the three from outside, and Barbara yanked open the door and rushed out to help the youngest of the trio — Deborah, Debbie, as the fifteen-year-old insisted — up from her momentary stumble. Suzanne had looped Irene's arm over her shoulder as the Witch of Glass groaned, staggering around in a manner almost like she was drunk. "Good to see that you're here," the redheaded witch said with a sigh. Lightly, she shoved her fraternal twin, raising a brow at Irene's unintelligible mumble. "Sorry. I'm still working on the teleportation spell."

The green-haired girl waved it off. "It's fine," Barbara said. "Managing to achieve Arcanix is a good enough feat for the two weeks we've been working. Speaking about that," she pointed at the oldest witch of the self-proclaimed Neo-Trix. "Detransform. You're wasting enough energy by keeping it up." Letting Deborah lean on her, Barbara moved the quartet towards the building, where she had pulled up chairs so the group could sit and discuss what had happened. She ignored the burst of purple energy around Deborah's smaller frame as the Lolita-dress faded away into a pink dress that was much plainer and much more practical for daily life.

Irene stumbled into a chair, the all-green biker attire she had worn replaced with a casual tank top and jeans. Her makeup was completely wiped away, and the dirty blonde groaned. "It always hurts," she grumbled. "Especially whenever I'm working with it for so long." She groaned. "And this is just the base form too... What is it going to take from us when we get Gloomix and Disenchantix?" The girl just sank onto the chair like a sack of potatoes, heaving a tired sigh. "Ah... I'm so _tired_ ," she whined softly, her green eyes moving over to Barbara as all the girls took their seats.

"Speak for yourself," Suzanne huffed, the redhead in ripped jeans and a leather biker jacket as she draped herself over the chair with a heavy groan and sigh. "We couldn't get to them, Barb. Bunch of Specialists came to help them at the last moment, and one of the pixies-in-training transformed," she hissed with a scowl. The punk-styled Witch of Explosions scowled, turning her head back to face Barbara head on. "I swear, Barb, we were so close too. We'll try harder next time, I promise," she continued, leaning forward in her seat, with both her arms draped over each chair on her side — Deborah on her right while Irene was on her left.

Barbara waved her off dismissively. "No, no, don't worry about that right now." _I can't be losing some of my prime pieces before the game's really moved into gear, can I? Good thing they got away. No one will be looking for them on Whisperia, though if they report to their teachers here that they've achieved the basic witch transformation, there'll be a request put in to transfer them to CT._ Her lips pressed together into a thin line as she thought further on it. _Mum did say that she could transfer me to CT if I wanted, though, so if they do end up going, I'll have to go too. But then, Deborah's not of school age just yet and I need to keep an eye on her._

"Barb, you alright, girl?" Suzanne asked, leaning forward and snapping her fingers in front of Barbara's face. "You spaced out a little on us just now, girl. Pence for your thoughts?" The redhead glanced at her, raising an arched brow at the green-haired girl that sat opposite her.

"I just don't want you to get into trouble, girls," Barbara feigned concern in her tone as she collected herself, smoothing down her clothes. She paused, staring briefly into space behind them as she contemplated her next move. If she played her cards correctly, then it was possible that she could wrestle some sympathy from them. Perhaps, too, if they were more empathetic, they would be more open to listening to her orders. "Actually," she said, "there's one thing that I _do_ want to talk to you girls about." She paused for some dramatic effect. "Have you girls heard about my mother's story?"

Irene gaped at her. "Uhh, Barbara, are you _serious_?! Everyone in Whisperia has heard of the great and powerful Selina Roth!" the blonde exclaimed, waving a hand in the air to emphasise her statement. "Like, seriously? Everyone knows your mother. _Everyone._ It's the _ultimate_ success story — Earth witch nobody Selina Roth comes to Whisperia, orphaned and raised by a kindly old fairy godmother. She's the underdog in a world where everyone else is powered by the Whisperian Crystals Whisperia is famous for. She makes her way into the then trashy Royal Guard and fought tooth and nail all the way to the top! And as the new Captain of the Royal Guard, she whips them into top shape. To add icing to the cake, she catches the eye of famous playboy and weapons manufacturer Bruce Kyle, and even got him to abandon his Casanova ways, before marrying him and settling into a life of success and affluence."

Deborah giggled a little at her middle sister's dramatic rendition of the green-haired Witch of Snake's story, nodding enthusiastically alongside Irene's dramatised narration and clapping her hands thunderously when the blonde was done. "Yay!" she cheered childishly with a laugh, her eyes glinting as she looked at her sister, then at Barbara. "And that's basically it, right?" she asked, her green eyes bright and wide as she stared at the green-haired girl. The youngest of the trio of sisters tilted her head to a side slightly as she looked at the girl. "So... what's the matter?" she asked, seeming to pick up the fact that Barbara had more to say on the topic.

Barbara exhaled slowly, committing herself to her decision. "I know I've been asking a lot of you girls just to help get you lot into the Guard, but... I need your help!" Her voice was partially filled with some very real desperation, though she didn't let it lord over her, lowering her gaze to appear almost ashamed. _Good, show weakness. Make it like you're desperate._ "That's not the whole story, exactly. My mum... well, she did some kind of shady things in her past, and now someone's trying to— oh, no, I probably shouldn't have brought it up!" she blurted out, cringing as if she had let slip a government secret.

"Wait, Barb, whoa, what's going on?" Suzanne asked, leaning in, her brow furrowed deeply together in concern. "Is this related to why you want those six girls dead?" The redheaded witch ran a hand through her pixie-cut hair. "'Cause this is _big,_ Barb. Something's up, it's clearly affecting you on a deeper level and hell if I'm going to let my friend suffer because she reached out and I couldn't offer any help to you. _Especially_ after you've got the three of us off the streets and into Whisperia Institute." She exhaled. "It's the least we could do, Barb."

 _Bingo._ Barbara sighed, hanging her head and letting her jaggedly-cut fringe hide her eyes, which were gleaming very wickedly in delight at the fact that the self-dubbed Neo-Trix had fallen hook, line and sinker for her tactics. Plastering on a 'wounded gazelle' look onto her face, she looked up at them, quivering her lower lip slightly to make her seem more self-conscious and appeal to the trio's soft spot. "Really?" she asked, her amber eyes wide in surprise. "You girls would... you girls would do that... for me? I couldn't ask that of you girls!"

"Hey, you can ask us for anything and we'd do it for you," Irene objected, sitting forward in her seat. "We owe you that much. Now spill, Barbara. What's going on?"

"Well..." Barbara exhaled heavily. "Alright. My mother... everyone knows her as the Witch of Snakes, but... well, when she was younger and still learning under Eldora, she was studying about this book..." Her voice dropped dramatically. "The Legendarium, which contains every single legend from the Magix Dimension and beyond. Prison, to the wizard Acheron." She hissed the name like it was poison. "He created the thing, trying to rule the Magix Dimension, but his creation got out of control and trapped him within in. Acheron, naturally, sought to free himself."

Seeing that all three of the witches were leaning forward, Barbara inhaled deeply before continuing. "One day, he approached my mother. He... offered to give her unlimited power if she helped to free him from the prison of the Legendarium, and threatened to unleash the creatures of the Legendarium should she not cooperate. Because Eldora was away and couldn't be contacted, my mother agreed to buy some time until Eldora returned. However, she had to keep up the facade, and under his instruction, carried out a few less than savoury actions while doing so. When Eldora got back, she locked Acheron away forever, and they agreed to never mention it again."

Inhaling deeply, the green-haired girl silently congratulated herself on acing her acting lessons. "Recently, someone found out that my mother once consorted with the dark wizard. They... they threatened to release that information to the public if I didn't comply with their demands. Acheron is _i_ _nfamous_ for his crimes against the Magix Dimension, considered one of the largest threats, just under the Dark Dragon Wizard Valtor and the Black Circle. If word got out that my mother worked under him, her reputation would be _ruined_ , and she wouldn't just be fired from her job — she might be accused of treason and then executed! That's why I need you girls' help to comply with the demands made so that everything will be alright."

"Well, you can count on us to help," Irene decided as she looped an arm around her fraternal twin and pulled the older of the two close to her. "We're all for helping a friend, right sisters?"

Suzanne nodded, the redhead running a hand through her hair. "Certainly," she agreed, the Witch of Explosions reaching over to grab both Irene and Deborah, wrapping her arms around their shoulders. "We'll help you out, Barb. Just say the word, and if we can do anything to help you, we will."

Deborah nodded, clasping her hands together. "We'll definitely lend you a hand," the Witch of Telekinesis said. "We owe you a lot, and you're our best friend!"

Barbara smiled, her more sinister grin hidden under a false-sincere expression. "Thank you, girls." _For being so gullible._

* * *

Raven growled a little, ignoring the irritated pounding on the door from the king of Eraklyon and Domino, moving to her bed and sitting on the side. A phone rested on the table placed beside her bed — one of the few pieces of furniture in her very Spartan bedroom — and after a pause, she snatched it up, flicking open the somewhat outdated old model that Tiara had rewritten the code for to use. The strawberry blonde would never say it out loud, but the other five _had_ grown on her somewhat through their calls. Setting up another conference call, she set the phone on the table and watched as the holographic display manifested five other screens, all waiting to connect.

Harmony, surprisingly, was the first to connect, the magenta-haired girl in her room, the door of which was barricaded with a chair under the doorknob. "In trouble?" she asked dryly, her navy eyes moving quickly from Raven to her door, where King Sky was still knocking incessantly. She frowned, folding her fully healed arms over her chest, the petite girl picking up her phone — as evidenced by the shifting of her background — and flopping back onto a red and white bed. "Well, you're not the only one." Her voice was dripping with some sort of venom.

The strawberry blonde huffed and rolled her blue eyes. "I wouldn't have figured without you telling me," she shot right back, lacing her fingers together and bracing her elbows on her legs. "Grounded, are we now?" At the other girl's indignant huff, Raven figured that she had gotten it correct. "Thought I wouldn't have been the only one." Glancing back at the screen, she noticed Harmony looking at the door. "He's still trying to get me to talk to him about my 'rebellious phase'," the pale girl said with a scowl, the air quotes appearing obvious even if she didn't make the motions for them.

Naida was the next to connect, the dark-skinned girl also sprawled out over her bed. "Has anyone found out anything so far?" she asked, with her pixie on her head and looking at the five-sectioned screen. "Otherwise, I don't think you would have called. You're not one for courtesy calls, after all," the fifteen-year-old added with a knowing tone. Her blue eyes twinkled in amusement at the indignation that filled Raven's expression. "Hey, just saying the truth, Raven. You're always annoyed whenever I make the weekly courtesy call, you know?"

Raven inhaled deeply. "Fair enough. This isn't a courtesy call — well, not really, in that sense. I want to know your situations so we can plan for our next move. I took the liberty of looking up Lucerna's name, but I won't say anything about that until everyone connects to the call. There's no point in repeating myself if I can avoid it. That way, everyone gets the same understanding and I don't miss anything upon the first or second explanation."

"Hmm, good to hear that," Maho remarked as she connected to the call, the silver-haired princess seated at a desk against a pink and blue room that Raven could only guess to be one of Alfea's dorm rooms. "We're just waiting on Lilliana and Tiara now." She turned her attention back to the desk and levitated a pen over to her, starting to write. All and well, since they had nothing to do while waiting, so why not finish what could only be homework?

"Here, here!" Tiara exclaimed as the brunette appeared on screen, looking a little harried. "Sorry I'm late — I just got off additional classes my parents forced on me as punishment for the stunt I pulled." She began tugging her fingers through her hair to smooth down the bright locks that were sticking out of place all over her head, occasionally typing something on another phone, to which Harmony also did, which was presumably a private chat.

Finally, the last screen turned on and Lilliana appeared, looking no worse for wear. "I'm sorry girls," she apologised in a soft voice as she put on a pair of wireless earphones, shifting them to hide the earpiece under her long hair. "My parents have me on house arrest and I'm technically not allowed to use my phone right now. So keep it down." She rubbed her upper arm, no longer bandaged up, which Raven took to mean that she was healed.

"Alright, status report," Maho instructed, setting down her pen. "I'm under curfew and not allowed to leave the school campus until further notice," she started.

"Grounded." Lilliana glanced away.

Naida nodded. "Same," she echoed.

"Ditto," Harmony said with a huff.

Tiara shrugged. "Just in some trouble," she said. "No grounding."

"Grounded," Raven said with a shrug. "Or what seems like it." She hadn't been explicitly told that she was under house arrest, after all.

Maho wrinkled her nose. "So all of us are in trouble," she said with a frown. "Well, now that we're all here, what did you find, Raven? Saves you the trouble of repeating anything."

The strawberry blonde nodded, picking up the notebook she'd recorded everything down that she had found. It had taken some searching in the old Domino archives, but she had eventually found the name in a thick book, along with a slew of others as well as a description that had piqued her interest. "Alright. Lucerna's the name of a dragon," she said bluntly. "I found her name along with five others — Machinosus," Maho tensed up at the name, "Alitura, Hydrus, Camena, and Draco." She turned the second page of her notebook. "Those are the names of dragons."

"Dragons?" Harmony interjected. "What does that have to do with—"

"Dragons," Tiara suddenly interrupted, her cyan eyes wide as if in realisation. "Machinosus, that's old Magix for 'machine'! A platinum dragon that looks like it was scaled in metal — _the Platinum Dragon!_ That's one of the Six Great Dragons! A-and Lucerna means 'light'! That— that means that Lucerna is—"

"The Holy Dragon!" Maho exclaimed, her sapphire eyes wide. "That means that... those voices we've been hearing..."

"...belong to the dragons?" Raven finished slowly, frowning. She was about to protest the conclusion reached when she stopped, realising that perhaps the older fairy had a point. She recalled the scene at Alfea weeks ago, and she felt a scowl curl her lips. So it was an undeniable truth at this point — there was nothing she could do to say that it was false. "Alright." She sounded a little resigned, much to her annoyance. "What do we do now, with that information in hand?"

Naida pursed her lips. "Well, we might just have an answer to why those three were after us," she suggested. "For the Dragon Powers we wield," the dark-skinned girl said, sitting up from her bed. "And with that in mind, we might just be able to find a way to defend ourselves if they attack us again! Maho, you said you spoke to Lucerna before, right?" At the silver-haired girl's nod, she continued, "Tiara, after the last attack, you mentioned a man shielded you from an attack and helped you transform into a fairy... that could have been Machinosus. The Dragons are helping us, that's what I believe, at least."

Lilliana frowned, having been silently listening to them all this time. "Then... what do we do?" she asked in a hushed tone, frowning slightly.

"I'm not sure, Maho mused quietly. "If what Naida posits is the truth, then it would only reason that the rest of you go and find your respective dragons. Lilliana, Naida, I know that the two of you haven't been hearing the voices—"

"Actually, I have," Naida interjected. "When I snuck out to go surfing with Acquanetta last night."

A light bulb seemed to go off above Harmony's head. "Give me a second," she said, hurriedly typing something away. "Got it! Alitura means 'nature'. Hyrdus — water. Camena can mean 'muse', but it also translates to 'verse', as in the verse of a song. Draco means 'dragon'. Naida, you heard a voice near water. I heard a voice near music. Tiara was hearing hers near tech. I don't know about Maho, but Raven, you heard that voice in Erakylon, the kingdom linked to Domino, the resting place of the Great Dragon. Catching on yet?"

Raven frowned. "I do. So, we have to find our individual dragons? Why? They don't seem to actually be doing anything."

"That may be true," Maho said, "but maybe if we unite all six of them, we can get our answers."

"Maybe, but I don't like the sound of that," Raven grumbled.

"Why are you prejudiced against this, anyway?" Tiara asked.

The strawberry blonde pursed her lips. "I'm not talking about that. Let's move on. Anything else to share?" As Tiara started to ramble on about something or the other, Raven frowned a little. Maybe she had to talk with someone who knew what was going on, and she had just the person in mind.

She was going to find a dead spirit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) Hmm, I wonder if Barb's telling the truth? If she is, then who's pulling her strings? If not, why is she pulling off this lie? (Hint: Why or who is something/one previously mentioned in the story)
> 
> 2) So yes, Gloomix and Disenchantix will be actual transformations in the story, accompanying the base witch transformation of Arcanix. Thoughts on them?
> 
> 3) Now that the girls have figured out one of the most essential parts to this story, what do you think Raven is going to talk to Daphne about?


	19. Nymphs and Dryads

Daphne Domino felt like time was something that just slipped through her fingers. Seconds were nonexistent, minutes passed by in the blink of an eye, hours seemed like seconds, and days, week, years and so on passed so quickly that she barely fathomed what was going on most of the time. Such was the life of a spirit residing in a lake, she supposed. The only time she actually could find time moving normally was when she was talking with someone, but her beloved parents had passed years ago, her sister was far too busy, and her niece — though the girl liked to deny that she actually came at all — came far less often than Daphne would have liked.

The ethereal spirit sighed, blowing out a stream of air that simply dissolved into bubbles as the Nymph of Domino resumed her meditation — one of the only ways she passed her time when alone. The feeling of the calm waters of the lake being disrupted startled the woman from her state of calm, and she gazed towards the source of the ripples, finding a pale hand scooping into the water. Daphne pushed herself to the surface of the water from the bed of the lake, her ethereal form dry as a bone even though she had just been fully submerged. "Raven, hello."

Her niece sat by the edge of the lake, her legs crossed Indian-style as she lifted her cupped hand from the water, where she had dipped it in to attract the woman's attention. "Daphne," she greeted quietly, making the spirit frown a little at her continual denial of familial titles. "I hope you're not busy." The question was asked in jest, or, at least, the woman hoped it was — Raven knew that Daphne didn't have much to do on a normal basis anyway. Moving straight into the main question, the strawberry blonde started, "I need your advice on something. It's..." She pursed her lips tightly together into a thin line. "It's very important."

"Then go ahead and simply speak up about it," Daphne advised the girl, facing her with a somewhat stern look on her partially transparent features as the ghostly woman moved from the centre of the lake to the edge where the girl was seated. "If it is truly as important as you indicate, then time is certainly of the essence. Not a moment is to be wasted. What is it, Raven?" she asked patiently, looking down at the seated strawberry blonde as the spirit stood on the surface of the lake water. She studied the features of the girl for a moment, attempting to discern for herself what was the matter, though it turned out to be mostly futile.

"What do you know about the Six Great Dragons of Magix?" Raven asked, not mincing her words in the least since the spirit had already given her the go-ahead. She shifted a little from her cross-legged position on the side of the lake, pushing herself up to her feet and dusting off her black hooded jacket and jeans from invisible specks of dust. It was a stance that suggested confidence and no unease that Daphne usually encountered around people who knew that she was dead, with her shoulders back and her feet wide apart. "And..." Raven paused. "Have you ever heard someone talk to you?"

"I'm dead, not deaf, sweetheart," Daphne pointed out with a particularly dry tone. The woman had never been one for sarcasm in life, but even she couldn't help throwing that out to the girl at the comment. "However, I understand your question. I've never had anyone telepathically communicate to me, no — not while I was in possession of the Dragon's Flame, at the very least. As for the Dragons, there's not much that I can say I do know for certain. The Great Dragon is unlike his brethren, that much I am aware of. He lies dormant while his Flame is used, passively supporting but not actively defending," she offered.

The strawberry blonde wrinkled her nose in an active show of frustration. "What kind of explanation is that?" she asked with a frown and a mildly offended look on her face. "Even if you wanted to misdirect and mislead me, couldn't you think of something better than a riddle in vague words?" Her tone was laced with annoyance, to which the blonde spirit chuckled warmly. "It's not funny, Daphne. I'm _serious_. I really need these answers before it ends up killing me or the other five girls." Raven shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket as she glared up at the woman with one visible blue eye.

Daphne had to try her best to not giggle — even when the girl was trying to look fierce, the fact that she was dressed like an emo rebel didn't really help her case. The Nymph of Domino had seen much scarier things in the form of the Ancestral Witches, so one little child that was baring her fangs and growling wasn't very threatening. She hid her smile behind a hand that daintily covered her mouth. "Very well then. I cannot tell you too much, but as the Nymph of Domino, I have learned much about the Great Dragon, though him alone. Keep in mind what I just told you, and remember that he is dormant until his brethren can wake him," she told the girl.

The girl glanced away, pursing her lips into a thin line. Then, her single visible eye widened in what was an obvious sign of realisation, and the girl nearly took a stumble forward, narrowly preventing herself from pitching forward into the waters of Daphne's lake. "Dormant," she whispered, her voice soft as she spoke to herself. "That's why his voice is so broken up. He's reaching out while in hibernation. If the others are actively seeking out the other five, then they're not dormant. They need to find everyone else first," she figured.

The blonde spirit smiled faintly — that was a fast deduction, but if the Dragon and his brethren had been reaching out as much as she figured, it was not surprising that she had already arrived at this conclusion. "Perhaps," the masked woman acknowledged with a hum, bringing up her hands to clasp them in front of her chest with an audible clap. "But you will not know until it truly happens, yes? Tell the other girls what you know, and the six of you can attempt to puzzle this out for yourself. That would be perhaps more in line with what the Dragons want, hmm?"

A blue eye narrowed at Daphne. "What do you know that you're not telling me?" Raven asked in an accusatory tone, folding her arms across her chest with a scowl. "And what does that mean? Do _not_ tell me that it's a Nymph-thing," she growled. "I won't buy that bull _twice_." The statement was hissed out in a tone that indicated she really wouldn't believe the Nymph of Domino if she insisted that was the case, though considering Daphne had indeed tried to pull that excuse off many times, the girl was justified in thinking it a sceptical excuse.

"Why would I possibly lie to you, Raven?" the blonde asked, feigning some well-acted surprise and hurt at the 'accusations' being levelled at her by her niece. "I'm only here to offer you some helpful advice, after all, no matter how vague it could possibly be. I'll let you know that I haven't lied to you at all—" yet, "— I promise!" The melodrama that came from hamming up the indignation nearly made the spirit smile and break facade. It was entirely too much fun playing around a little with the strawberry blonde, especially when she wasn't actually doing anything to her.

Daphne had to get her fun somewhere, after all, and being in a lake where few people ever came to talk with her made that a little hard. She wished sometimes that Bloom could get her a television or something that could feasibly work underwater without the magic infusing the lake irreversibly destroying the electronics, but the Nymph could live with playing pranks on her niece.

Raven narrowed her eyes at the woman. "Sure..." she muttered, dragging out the last vocalisation of the word enough to make it clear that she didn't really trust the woman with what had just been said. Rolling her eyes, the girl let her arms drop to either side. "Either way, thank you for that, Daphne. Is there anything I can get for you when I come back next week?" she asked, zipping up her black jacket entirely and pulling her hood on over her chin-length curly hair that she inherited from the girl's mother. "And for goodness sake, something more sensible than asking me to lug a huge crate in for... whatever it was."

"A DIY building project for spirits," Daphne cheerfully informed the grumpy girl, motioning to the half-built fountain she had at one end of the lake. "If you could get a TV in here next time, we could play some video games instead of talking. I happened to have been very good at them when Bloom and I had the occasional session before her coronation." With some controllers that worked in her ghost hands, of course. Daphne missed the feeling of corporealness very much, but that Tecna girl from Bloom's friends had managed to find a way to ghost-proof some materials so she could touch them, so that was a plus.

Her niece stared at her in disbelief before her mood soured instantly at the mention of the queen. "Yeah, sure, I'll try to find a way," she muttered darkly, turning away. "Have a good day, Daphne. I'll see you next week... and thanks for not telling them that I come here to vent." Her black-clad form left through the one entrance into the room, the sound of her footsteps fading away. Finally, the door closed gently behind her as she left the room entirely.

Daphne floated over to her half-finished project, deciding to finish it from where she had left off after finding it too complicated without a proper tutorial. As she picked the pieces up, she uttered a quiet prayer in Old Magix. _"Great Dragon, guide her on her path. Show her the way to her destiny and protect her,"_ she repeated from memory, one of the few phrases she had learnt in her few years as the Nymph of Domino.

_"I will... take care_ _—_ _dear Daphne..."_

With a smile on her face, the blonde thanked the Dragon in her thoughts. At least now she could rest easy, knowing that her niece wouldn't be in too much danger. Now, to finish this pesky DIY project...

* * *

"Huh... is that really what she said?" Harmony asked, the girl's loud voice blasting through Naida's earphones, making the girl scramble to immediately tone down the sound before her eardrums ruptured from the volume. Apparently, Raven had been speaking at a very low volume for the past few minutes.

From the corner of her eyes, Naida saw the other four girls reach for their volume control panels on their separate projection screens, dialling the volume back down to a reasonable range before they all went deaf. Sitting straight up on her bed, she followed the panel where Raven's phone camera was pointing down the hallway of the private wing in the Palace of Domino. It was modelled similarly to the wing inside Eraklyon's palace, the darker-skinned girl noticed, but she didn't say anything about it. "It seems like if that's the case, then we need to step up our game," she said. "Who's left?"

Tiara looked down on her screen as she brought up a shared screen, matching up names. "Alitura with Lilliana... Naida, you're with Hydrus... and Harmy, you're with Camena," she answered, magnifying the words on the screen so everyone could see clearly. "Then once we clear that, we deal with finding the Great Dragon and getting him to answer our questions about all this and boom!" She smacked her palm with a fist. "We're done!" she announced cheerfully, picking her phone up again and holding it out, giving the rest of the girls a better angle of the brunette sprawled out on her bed.

"That's being too hopeful," Maho chided, the silver-haired girl raising her head from working on her homework for Alfea's classes. "And even then, it's not nearly the full story. We still have to deal with the person who's hunting us, don't forget that. We haven't been able to figure anything out on that end yet, and it's not helping us at all. I've been looking over my shoulder all the time when I'm in defence class," she griped quietly. Suddenly, she shifted a bit. "Keep it down for a while, girls. Mae just got back and I need to plug in my headphones before—"

_"Maho, is that Lils you're talking to?"_

"Too late," Raven muttered, not that Maho could give her a response as a girl with rosewood-coloured hair appeared in the frame next to Maho.

"It is!" The girl, Mae, beamed widely. "My little baby Lils! I'm so glad to see you again!"

Lilliana smiled faintly. "Hello Mae," she greeted softly, shifting a little to hide her earphones under her long dark blue hair. Jade eyes darted from side to side before she focused back on the screen. "Um, not to be rude, Mae, but Maho really needs to take this call... it's kind of private between the six of us...?" she suggested timidly, fidgetting with the pastel streak through her deeper blue bangs, tugging slightly on it in discomfort. "...please?" she added hastily after a short pause.

Maho's roommate looked a bit aggravated. "Look, Lils, both you and Maho have been secretive as heck during the past few weeks, and Maho got put under dorm arrest. I need to know what's going on. You're my cousin, she's my friend, and I'm worried about the two of you! Come on, more heads are better than the number you have right now, right?" she asked in a pleading tone, leaning into the screen and tossing her ponytail over her shoulder. She briefly obscured Maho for a moment before she moved back to allow Maho back into the screen. "So come on, please?"

Before any of the girls could answer, Raven suddenly hissed a warning at them for all of them to be silent. She turned her phone onto speaker and held it out to a door, moving it to the bottom of the door where some light was filtering out into the darker hallway. "Shut up and listen," she snapped in a hushed voice. "I think this is important — I saw a Whisperian aircraft in the courtyard earlier today. This could be it, what we're looking for." Her voice was a bit more distant — the strawberry blonde must have unplugged her earphones.

 _"_ _— glad as I am to see you too, B... what's going on that was so serious that you needed to talk to me face to face about?"_ It was a foreign voice, one that no one in the class recognised at all. Raven shifted the camera angle, inching open the door slightly so that she could get the phone camera to glimpse the room. A woman with green hair, clad in navy lined with green, came into view, and immediately, the woman on screen was screenshotted by Raven before the camera continued to show the group of watching girls the feed.

Naida could see Tiara turning on some kind of recording software on her end, silently and furiously typing away at the keyboard, a look of intense concentration on the brunette's face.

 _"Well, Selina... is your daughter involved in... well, anything risky?"_ That was asked by Aunt Bloom, and the redhead, while never in the frame as Raven had chosen to focus her camera lens on the unfamiliar green-haired woman, could vaguely be guessed to be seated on the woman's other end. _"Not that I'm accusing her of doing anything shady, of course... it's just..."_ There was a barely audible exhale of frustration. _"Okay, Selina, I respect you too much as a fellow mother and my old best friend, so I'll cut to the chase. There's been evidence linking your daughter to an attack on mine and the rest of the Winx Club's girls."_

 _"Bloom! Are you accusing my daughter of attacking your girls?"_ the woman, Selina, asked, very audibly aghast at such an accusation. She stood up, the chair she was seated in shifting back as she cocked a hip out, bracing her hands on her hips. _"Barbara wouldn't hurt anyone! She's only_ sixteen _, Bloom! What do you think she is, a murderer in training?! There's no way she's involved in anything! I can't believe that you'd say something like that to your oldest friend!"_ The woman leaned in, slamming her hands, palm down, onto a table that was located just in between the two women.

 _"Selina, Selina,_ pax _, please,"_ Aunt Bloom pleaded calmly, the fairy's voice tinged with an unworded request. _"I don't want to drag any children into this... but you have to remember that at sixteen, a lot of people were already doing some very unsavoury things."_ Her voice was heavy with weariness. _"I need you to listen to me, Selina. I'm serious about this. When the girls were attacked, Stella got us the information she collected from the witnesses at the scene... Barbara was seen fleeing from the girls as they chased her down, and she was seen lounging around the area near them before the incident happened."_ The woman slid something over across the table.

Selina took the folder, flipping through it before she started to sink down into the chair, her shoulders slumping in a gesture of defeat. _"I was supposed to be head of the security detail when Ambassador Chrys came to Eraklyon,"_ she said weakly. _"I was convinced to stay at Whisperia with Her Highness... Barb was in training to become a future guard herself and she was one of the interns on the trip. That was why she was there_ _— she had nothing to do with the attack, I swear, Bloom. She wouldn't hurt anyone."_

 _"Selina..."_ Aunt Bloom trailed off, her voice soft. _"The facts are saying otherwise. I know it could just all be a massive coincidence, but could it really? I'm not saying that she's the mastermind behind all of this, but she's a link, a central link that we have. We aren't going to punish her if she's being forced to do anything, but if she is, we need to know. We need to get this threat out of our lives, Selina, and we need to talk to your daughter to know what's going on. Please, cooperate with us, Selina? For me, your oldest and best friend?"_ she tried gently.

There was silence, for a while. Then, Selina spoke again, sounding weary. _"I'll speak with Barb and clear things up. If something's going on, I'll get it out of her, but neither you nor your husband or any of your forces are going to lay a hand on my little girl, Bloom, is that clear? I won't tolerate you going behind on that. I'll show you why I'm the Captain of the Whisperian Guard. I'll play it fair with you, Bloom. You have my word that I'll cooperate."_ Selina pushed the files aside on the table with her finger and she straightened herself in her seat. _"But the moment you cross that line, and we're done. Got it?"_

 _"Of course, Selina. Thank you so much."_ The relief in Aunt Bloom's tone was palpable.

Raven gently eased the door shut and hightailed it out of there, plugging in her earphones as she went. The darkened corridor passed by in a blur of colour, occasional lighting fixtures on the walls dimmed down just enough to still be visible in the darkness but not throwing shadows onto the walls. "Everyone heard that?" she hissed, skidding to a stop in front of a pair of double doors, throwing one side open and stepping in before she turned around and locked the doors behind her.

"Heck yes!" Mae burst out. "Lils, Maho, you two were attacked? Is that why you're in trouble now?"

The six children of the Winx Club fairies shared glances at each other, uncertain of how to progress, before Maho, of all people, caved.

"Yes, Mae, and we're trying to track down the culprit so we know what's going on and we're all safe. That's why this has to be kept within us as a group. I don't want anyone to catch wind of what's going on and potentially hurt us more," she explained hurriedly. "If you want to help us, all you have to do is stay silent about this. The more people that are in on this, the more likely we are to get caught, or worse. I know that you want to help, but unless you can help us find out what's going on, the best role you can play is as our secret keeper, okay?"

Mae frowned, leaning into the camera. "You're forgetting who I am," she said boldly. "Fairy of Forests. I can help you girls gather information, trust me on it! Just give me a chance, and I promise I'll have something useful for you girls by the end of next week!" She clasped her hands together in front of her chest, looking pleadingly into the camera. "I swear on my magic that I'll be able to do something for you girls!"

The girls looked at each other again, unease and wariness prominent in the six pairs of eyes. It was made plainly obvious that they were uneasy about allowing Mae to be dragged into this mess, willingly or not on the other fairy's end. The fact that they had people hunting them, clearly intending to kill them, should have made it an easy choice as it was — simply put, it should have been a clear no, but no one spoke up to protest it, and Naida could guess why. Even if they didn't want to get Mae into this, the girl was confident that she could get them the answers they were looking for.

And they _really_ needed the answers right now.

"Alright," Tiara suddenly said, "I've been running a scan for women named Selina that fit that woman's profile, and I think I've cracked it. Selina Kyle nee Roth, about forty, if the source is to be trusted, from Earth, Witch of Snakes. She's married to writer and former playboy Bruce Roth from Whisperia, the multi-millionaire behind the Glimmer series that's gone on to spawn countless sequel books, movies and TV shows. She has a daughter that's about sixteen... and... girls, look at this!" She shared her screen, and the profile picture for the daughter made Naida tense.

"That's her, the girl!" Naida exclaimed. "Can you pull up a profile photo of Selina and Bruce?" When Tiara complied, the girls fell silent. It was an exact replica of Lilliana's drawings in her sketchbook, right down to the positions they were facing in the picture and the way their hair was cut and styled.

Harmony leaned in, narrowing her eyes a little. "Huh... so it's her that we need to face to figure out the answers we need," she concluded with a frown. "But we don't know where she is. How do we find out?"

Lilliana cleared her throat uneasily. "Um... girls, as much as I hate to say it... Mae could help us. I don't... I don't want to pull her into this, but the sooner we manage to solve this, the safer all of us are..."

There was a collective sigh across the board, but all of the girls had a renewed expression of steely determination now that they had a solid lead as to where to go from there.

"Alright," Maho finally consented., leaning back in her seat and turning to the fairy with rosewood hair. "Mae? Welcome to the club."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) Not that many questions brought up that aren't being answered here, but what do you think the girls will find when they inevitably confront Barbara?
> 
> 2) Which of the girls is going to be next to meet their dragon?
> 
> 3) Next chapter is likely to finally feature the main villain of the book; who are they going to be?


	20. Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Jessica is the property of JessamineCalore12, and Rocksand is the property of Aquarian-Valentine, both of whom kindly submitted them for the story.

Grand Duchess Flora Lisandre nee Kora of Linphea had never been so worried about her daughter. She never really had a reason to, of course. Lilliana was the sweetest girl that ever lived, in the Fairy of Nature's opinion, even sweeter than Miele had been as a child. And she still was... well, up until the recent few months, that was, and that was what had worried Flora immensely. Lilliana had started sneaking out of the palace for no real rhyme or reason, and then the 'Magix' situation had happened, with the six Winx children all sneaking out to Magix and getting themselves hurt.

Helia had been taken aback when Flora almost literally exploded onto the poor girl when they saw their girl after hearing from the Magix authorities that Lilliana had been involved in an incident. Flora had transformed on impulse and nearly flew over to Magix with only her wings and fairy dust before her husband had managed to calm her down and coax her to wait for a ship to take them to Magix instead, reasoning to her that it would be faster than trying to fly there in her Believix and using her special wings. It wasn't until they were halfway there that Flora actually realised he had been wrong and he had just said it to calm her down, which she was thankful for since it helped the fairy not immediately lash out in fear and frustration at the healer that was patching Lilliana's broken arm up.

She had immediately grounded Lilliana for an indefinite period of time afterwards, deathly afraid that her little girl would end up getting herself into danger that could potentially get her killed. Flora had never said it before, but she knew that she had withheld her adventures with the Winx Club from her parents for a good reason, least of all being that going after the Magix Dimension's most dangerous villains was not something any parent would want their barely adult child doing. When the story broke that she had saved Magix from Valtor with the rest of the Winx, her parents had been simultaneously terrified of what she was going through and worried about her well-being, but she had purposefully evaded any and all attempts to make her stay behind — the other girls were just as important as keeping that promise to her parents.

Flora knew that she was being selfish about this, but she didn't want Lilliana following in her footsteps at all, no matter what Bloom said about the girls wielding powers on the scale of the Dragon's Flame. It was simply too dangerous, and Flora had lived it firsthand. Theoretically speaking, she was the second most powerful of the Winx Club fairies, with magic that was unhindered by any limitations, but she was too soft to actually use the full potential of her powers so, in practice, she was the weakest of the girls. Flora wasn't ashamed of it, though — she had lived through every challenge the girls had faced without too much harm to her person.

Flora herself had been sixteen when she had gotten into her first spot of danger, and she had kept diving into it time after time. During her first year, it was due to her loyalty to her new friend Bloom and her loyalty to the rest of the Winx Club — her first true friends. Knut hadn't been that dangerous either, but Bloom had always come through for the girls. Her second year, Flora had been motivated by the kindness of her heart to help Aisha in her plight, and when Bloom had been manipulated by Darkar into becoming Dark Bloom, her loyalty had persevered, making her stay on regardless. Her third year was the most personal — after earning her Enchantix, she realised two things. One, Valtor had threatened her family now. Two, she was one of the few that had the ability to stop him. After that, she was an adult and had every right to make her own decisions, and she chose to follow the rest of the Winx to Earth.

However, things were different when it came to her daughter. Lilliana was barely fifteen, and she hadn't even achieved her first fairy form yet. Flora wasn't sure she was ready to let her baby girl dive headfirst into danger, even if it seemed as if the rest of the Winx Club was — Tecna's enthusiasm at seeing young Tiara transform had said enough regarding what she would, or rather, wouldn't do when it came to punishment. The brunette didn't like to think of herself as a strict parent, but she didn't have much choice if she wanted to keep her only child safe.

Lilliana had been very silent, though, ever since she had been grounded. The girl had been in her room, and Flora often caught her on her phone, but despite warnings to stop using her device, she had seen her daughter on conference calls with the other five daughters of the Winx. It was a good thing that they were getting along, certainly, but Flora wished desperately that her daughter would just listen to her and stop pursuing what she was doing. It had already got Lilliana hurt once, and if it happened again, the blue-haired fairy-to-be would likely not be as lucky.

Flora sighed quietly as she entered the meeting room, reaching for the device used for formal interplanetary communications, and opened a channel to speak with the rest of the Winx, checking the time as it approached their set meeting time. "Bloom," the Fairy of Nature said as soon as the redhead — the last of the Winx Club fairies — entered the call, "we need to get this over with. I'm getting worried about Lilliana and the girls," she said, her voice soft as ever, but a clear sense of desperation filled her voice. "Please tell me you have something."

"Better. I have someone," Bloom said, shifting aside to let a woman with green hair and yellow eyes into the frame. "Girls, I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine. Selina, this is the girls. Girls, this is Selina, mother to miss Barbara Kyle."

* * *

Tiara glanced around, looking left and right like she was a young child crossing the road for the first time. Peering down the grey and purple hallways of the Central Block of the Palace of Zenith, she affirmed that there was no one present and immediately shot down the chromic corridors like there was fire nipping at her heels — a blur of pink and purple as the young fairy darted down at top speed, though it wasn't long before she was huffing and puffing for breath and had to stop herself before her hyperventilating breath drew more attention than her herself.

Grimacing at her sorely unimpressive stamina, the brunette fairy promised herself that she would eventually get to speaking with Harmony and getting her very best friend forever to help her build up her running stamina, at the very least. Sure, she had wings now, but that wouldn't help her if she actually needed to run. Tiara blanched at a random thought that came to her — Alfea wouldn't require her to run, would they? She hoped not; there was no chance that she would actually be able to pass that class if that were the case.

Back to her escapade, the young Fairy of Weather made her way down the halls, opting for silence over speed this time, inching her way out of the palace and into the cold streets of the Zenithian capital. She might not be in trouble, per say, but her parents had made it clear that if they saw her sneaking out again, there would be punishment and subsequent groundings to follow, so the princess of Zenith was careful not to be seen by the cameras that were observing each hallway and the perimeter of the palace, remaining in their blind spots as she crept away.

Tiara walked down the long street leading towards the shopping centre that had been renovated a few times over the course of her parents' reign to better accommodate everyone, especially now that more immigrants from other planets were moving to Zenith and vice versa. She had some parts to pick up for a new gadget she was working on, and her computer's processing unit could still be improved with a few more parts if she wanted optimal speed and processing. She had found that after she had first transformed after her encounter with Machinosus, her computers were no longer running up to speed, even though the speed loggers she had installed said that it was running as normal.

Heading to the electronics section of the centre, the teenage girl passed by the clothing section, catching sight of two women walking down the path towards her, likely heading towards the clothing section. One of them had a curly black mane that graduated to a rich purple, the other had blonde hair in curled, aristocratic-looking ringlets down her back. Both were relatively beautiful in a conventional sense, but otherwise, Tiara considered them completely forgettable... that was, until she overheard their conversation, and that made her double back as discreetly as she could — that was to say, not at all, but they were already past her, so they didn't see her reaction.

"— that Kyle girl failed again," the woman with black hair was saying, sounding annoyed as she sashayed down the walkway, her hands on her hips rather arrogantly. Her voice was quite nice to listen to, but it was plain from the tone that she wasn't talking about happy things. "I give her one job, one task, and look at how she's done so far? Nothing, no results, nothing at all! And not to mention she's even caused a scandal between the kingdoms! Ugh, trust the daughter of the best Whisperian witch to be a total failure."

Kyle? Whisperian witch? Now she had Tiara's attention. Creeping back to avoid drawing too much attention, Tiara tried to pass herself off as also looking for clothing, staying close to the two while holding out her phone as discreetly as possible, even crawling into a rack of clothes as the two women perused the rack opposite it to record them and their conversation. This sounded like it could be useful to the girls in their investigation.

"Jessie-darling, you're not really doing that, are you?" the blonde woman asked, sounding affronted, her citrine eyes blazing in a clear display of emotion as she faced the black-haired woman with a look on her face that suggested she wasn't happy with the other. "Jessica Whisperia, are you honestly holding a poor girl's mother's reputation over her head so she'll do what you ask her to? I can't believe that you'd do something like this. The girl isn't responsible for what her mother did. She wasn't even born yet when it happened! You're too afraid of getting your own hands dirty, so you'll use an innocent child? That's a new low, even for you."

Jessica, the black-haired woman, looked at the blonde. "Dia, you can't say that you never thought the same," she retorted, rounding in on the woman. "You were in love with Sky Eraklyon once too, and you tried to get rid of your rival in the exact same manner that I'm doing right now. How can you criticise me for doing what you did?" She placed her hands on her hips, narrowing blue eyes at Diaspro. "I'm not against getting my hands dirty, Diaspro. This is just being pragmatic, you know. I don't need an interdimensional scandal on my hands. _My_ people need care too, unlike how you just went with Valtor's plan without care for the people of Isis?

Diaspro took a step back, looking affronted at the accusation her friend — cousin, actually, if Tiara recalled correctly from the information they had dug up during research about Whisperia — had levelled at her. "Are you _seriously_ equating what I did as a foolish, emotion-driven teenager who was more hung-up about her _fiance_ _cheating_ on her with you, a mostly level-headed woman with no actual ties to your obsession? Did you hit your head on your way here, Jessica? I thought you had more sense than that!" she hissed viciously.

Jessica narrowed her eyes at Diaspro, the tanned woman looking down her nose at the slightly smaller blonde. "I'm doing him a favour, and the rest of Whisperia," she said sternly, folding her arms over her chest. "That Dragon's Flame fairy... she's bad news, Dia." Her voice softened substantially. "You can feel it. Didn't she turn evil back when she was a teenager or something? I'm just doing her husband a favour by getting her out of the picture. By proxy, that involves getting the rest of the Winx Club too, and that's far more beneficial to me and the rest of Whisperia. They've been giving witches a bad name with their constant harping on."

"What are you trying to do?" Diaspro asked, aghast. "Look, Jess, darling, I'm not going to stop you — it's out of my ability to — but I don't condone this either! This is a feud between you and the Winx Club, then you'll settle it like adults. Why are you going after their children? The oldest one is barely an adult and the youngest is barely out of childhood! Their daughters are innocent in all of this — targetting them is such an underhanded method!" The blond woman shook her head grimly. "Stop it, Jessica. Stop while you're still ahead. If your tool kills any of the children and you're found out, do you _know_ what is going to happen to you? The Whisperian name will be tarnished. Your father will probably be dethroned. _You'll probably be executed_. And all because you're listening to your psychotic advisors?"

"Rouge and Chermaine have their points, Diaspro. Have you _seen_ his business deals?" Jessica asked, raising an arched brow down at Diaspro. "It's like he's been brainwashed — all of his business dealings favour Domino. He's obviously being manipulated and controlled by Bloom Domino. There's no other reason why. He's even been living there more than he lives in Eraklyon now! They're married, yes, but he has his own kingdom to tend to and that can't be taken care of by a simple holograph call, for goodness' sake."

The blonde woman just shook her head, seeming more bemused than anything else. "You think she's cast a spell on him?" she asked, an expression of confusion on her face. "That's why he broke up with me for her? You... you're just _delusional_ , Jessie," she said, exhaling rapidly, her shoulders slumping. "Please, Jess, stop while you're still ahead. Call off Miss Kyle before something actually happens and it's too late to stop. Your obsession is getting out of hand," she told the other quite firmly and angrily. "You're going to end up killing those girls at this rate."

"That's exactly the point," the black-haired woman shot back. "Kill those brats, weaken their parents into a state of grief, and when it's all done, take out their parents too and we're done. Bloom's gone, Sky's freed of her influence, and the stigma on witches will be all gone. That's the perfect scenario. Now, no more talk about this. Oh, see that cute little black and red dress over there? Hmm, you think he likes my colour scheme? It works nicely on me after all..." Heeled boots were clacking over towards the clothes rack where Tiara was, and it signalled her to stop her recording.

Fleeing through the clothing racks, the brunette emerged on the other side of the room and made a break for it, high-tailing it home without even worrying if the security cameras picked her up. She didn't notice, in her distress and need to get the video to the other girls, that she was leaving sparks of lightning in her wake, and if she had looked closer, she would have realised that as she dashed past, the LED lights on the security cameras were off before they were turned on once more as she left their field of vision.

 _Girls, we may have just had our big break,_ Tiara thought to herself, her cyan eyes wide and her heart racing. _Please be on!_

* * *

Naida looked down both ends of the corridor, Acquanetta fluttering around her head with an anxious buzz coming from the rapid fluttering of the Pixie of Rivers' wings. Creeping along a few feet behind her was the Second Princess of Andros, her younger sister Rocksand, who shared many of her features — really their mother's — though she was already much taller than the Crown Princess. "Is the coast clear?" the Crown Princess whispered to her younger sister, who was peering down the other end of the corridor to check if there was anyone on their tail.

"Mhm," Rocksand murmured with a nod, her ponytailed dark brown hair bobbing, shining with a strong amber overtone as the overhead lights of the corridor reflected off the strong waves of her hair. The younger Androsi princess smoothed her curly bangs back from her face, her brown eyes narrowing. "Nai, are you absolutely sure that you want to sneak out? You know what happened last time you snuck out... plus, you're still grounded. Mum and Dad are going to kill me if they learn that you've left and I was the one that helped you to get out." The thirteen-year-old shivered. "I don't want to be punished, Nai."

The older girl shook her head. "Don't worry too much about it, Rocksand," she said, her blue eyes darting around the corner. "If — _if_ — I get caught, I'll make sure that you're not involved in this at all, I promise. This is really important. I need to get outside. Just— just occupy mum and dad for a while if they want to see me, and stall for a long as humanly possible until I can get back. I swear that it won't be too long; I just need to get outside... right into the ocean..." she muttered, trailing off. "Acquanetta... maybe you should stay behind too? Play those recordings we had?"

The pixie nodded. "Alright," she conceded quietly. "But you gotta promise me, Nai, that you're going to stay safe, okay?" The blue and green-clad pixie flew over, gently tapped Naida's forehead to emphasise her point. When she earned herself a nod from the older Androsi princess, the Pixie of Rivers nodded to herself and flew off, her wings fluttering as she vanished from sight, a trail of sparkles from her wings visible until they disappeared moments later. She was headed to Naida's bedroom, where the girl had left her phone, full of casual conversation recordings between them from the past few weeks.

"Alright then, wish me luck," Naida breathed, her shoulders slumping as she glanced around. The girl, clad in a loose T-shirt, shorts and sandals, looked around once more before breaking off like a bat out of hell, her long brown curls pulled back into a ponytail that was curled into a tight bun. The girl darted out of the main palace building and out towards the exit of the palace where a long stretch of beach waited. Sneaking out along that path, Naida hurried over to the sturdy shed by the side where her surfboard was. She felt bad that Acquanetta had to miss a surfing session, but if Naida wanted to get into the middle of her 'element', it was either this or swimming, and Naida wasn't that good of a swimmer despite how well her sister and mother swam.

Paddling out to the waves off the shore, the dark-skinned girl leapt up as soon as a decent wave came along. She let her hands glow with some magic she had learnt to call up with help from Acquanetta — it was still completely neutral in nature as she hadn't yet 'decided' on whether she would be a fairy or a witch by transforming, but it worked, calling the ocean up to her and pushing her forward in a smooth wave as sparks of light danced off her fingers into the blue waters that were being stirred up by the magic at her fingertips.

Naida adjusted her body for balance as her curly brown hair whipped in her face, the salt water sprinkling itself across her and leaving behind the ever-familiar scent that permeated every corner of the oceanside palace of Andros. Blue eyes were wide as she looked around, keeping her ears alert for the man's voice she'd heard only once in her head. _Come on, come on,_ she urged as she shifted the wave to another direction, wincing as the wave pulled back against her, not wanting to follow her direction of control. _No, no, no, no, no!_ she panicked, pushing more energy into it as she attempted to guide the wave further from the palace.

The wave refused to obey, and even with her magic pulling at the water to keep the wave up, the rising wall of water collapsed under her, leaving her surfboard without support to stay in the air, sending her and the board plummeting down into the water below with a large, unfortunately loud, splash of water, sending ripples across the surface of the ocean and bubbles rising to the surface as Naida fell beyond the surface, trying to claw her way up after the wipeout. The surfboard sank down slower than Naida did, but it was still descending fast enough to smack hard into the girl as she tried to swim upwards to the surface.

With a silent cry of surprise as she was hit by the surfboard, Naida released the air she had in her lungs by accident, and feeling the ache and burn in her lungs, the Androsi princess tried to swim as fast as she could to the surface, though her limbs were sluggish from the magic she'd used earlier to keep the wave going in the direction she wanted, to no real success. Clawing fruitlessly through the water, Naida sank deeper despite her best efforts, wearing out the remaining energy in her limbs with the more effort she used.

"Hold your breath, young one," a chiding male voice uttered, and a bubble of air formed around Naida, allowing the girl to rapidly inhale for the air she had been deprived of. The voice she'd only heard one other time belonged to a man with tanned skin, a silver sheen covering him entirely. His dreadlocked hair was seafoam green, pulled back into a messy ponytail and decorated with sea stars and shells. His clothes comprised of a scaly fabric that wrapped loosely around his torso, with a shimmering fabric that draped around his legs tied around his waist with a red coral belt. Blue eyes locked on Naida as the man offered her a gentle smile, kneeling down to meet the girl — of average height, mind you — eye to eye, emphasising how tall he was. "Hello, Naida."

"You're Hydrus," Naida said, realising only moments after that it sounded rather silly, to tell someone what their name was. "You saved me," she continued regardless, still breathing deeply to alleviate the ache in her burning lungs. "I found you." The last one was muttered under her breath, her heart still racing from the near giving out of her lungs. That made her and the girls just one step closer to discovering what was going on, much to her internal elation. She still inhaled deeply to calm her racing heart, looking out through the bubble at Hydrus.

Hydrus nodded sagely, looking firmly at her. "Now, listen, Naida, I have some very important things to tell you, and you have to remember them, understand?" he asked. Before Naida could answer him, he continued, "You must find the rest of my brethren and awaken our hibernating brother. It is imperative for the future of your world that he is awakened. Find my beloved, let her find her wielder. Remember this, Naida, and tell the others: There is upcoming darkness in this future, and only when all the Great Dragons are in sync with their wielders can it be beaten back forever. You _must_ tell them this, remember!"

With that strongly-worded command, the man vanished in a burst of light, water swirling around into the form of a serpentine dragon as it shot towards Naida, shattering the bubble of air and encircling the Androsi girl before sinking into her.

"Naida Magic Winx!"

* * *

In Linphea, Lilliana's charm bracelet, already missing a golden daffodil and a Zenithian moonflower, lost a blue and green sea lily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) Do you guys like segments like the first scene where the Winx Club get their feelings shared, or would you guys want more scenes focused on the next generation?
> 
> 2) Well, now we've learnt our villain's identity! How many of you saw this coming? What about Diaspro's role? Speaking of Diaspro, yes, I am aware that Jessica's motivation is just Diaspro's, ramped up to murderous intentions. Does the juxtaposition between them work for you or not?
> 
> 3) Finally, when it comes to Hydrus' ominous warning, what do you think it'll mean?


	21. The Magix

"Naida Magic Winx!" The words felt _magical_ , literally. Though many fairies didn't invoke words while they transformed, it just felt completely right to say them as her mother had before her when Aisha Andros joined the Winx Club as an official member.

Naida felt the invigorating magic wash over her as water submerged her entirely. She extended her hands out as she spun on her heel, dragging the water around her into ribbons that lashed around her body, warping into a one-shoulder top and knee-long leggings when she came to a stop. She somersaulted mid-air, water quickly flowing around her into the form of a skirt that burst into a tutu when she landed. Clapping her heels together, water splashed around her, forming strappy sandals and swirling into the shape of her wings before the fairy flew out of the water, surfacing with a gasp of air.

Clad in a glittering teal outfit, the new fairy wore a sleeveless crop top, paired with a tutu of tulle over a set of knee-length leggings, also matching the same colour. Her sandals were identical in colour, matching the pattern, and were held in place by straps of darker teal. Her wings, though, were webbed, almost shaped like fins of a fish, primarily white with tinges of bluish grey, as well as the main 'frame' of the wings being a more solid blue-grey hue. The fairy took in her new form, even as she announced her transformation loudly for all to hear, "Naida, Fairy of Oceans!"

Her wings carrying her weight easily, the Androsi crown princess knew that she had to return to her room and call the other girls immediately. For one, she had to tell them that she found Hydrus. Building off that, she had to tell them about his message to her — the dark and ominous feeling of it didn't leave her with a good sense of the future at all. Other than that, though, the Fairy of Oceans really just wanted to show off to her new friends that she was now a fairy too, along with Maho and Tiara. The fairy flew off in the direction of the palace, the moisture clinging to her body repelled as she sped home, drying herself off in the process.

As she reached the tall spires of the Androsi palace, Naida flew towards the balcony where she knew her room lay just beyond, alighting on the blue and white bannister and jumping down onto the grey-tiled balcony floor. She reached out and threw open the translucent sliding doors to her room, only for the girl to stop and pale when she looked inside, tensing up entirely as she stared at the people sitting on her bed. "Uh... mum, dad..." she stammered out, her blue eyes wide and blanching in fear at the possible repercussions for her actions. "W-what are you doing here in my room?"

Her mother turned a stern blue gaze onto the Crown Princess, making the girl fidget and step back, shrinking a little from the reprimanding glance. The queen sighed as she stood up, reaching out to take the girl by the hands and pull her along with her to sit on the bed, with the princess between her parents. "Where were you, young lady, that enabled you to transform?" The dark-haired woman pinned her stern gaze on the girl unflinchingly as Naida fidgetted nervously under the look. "Do you know how worried we were when we opened your door and realised that you weren't here?"

Her father placed a hand on her shoulder, his eyes a little softer than those of the Queen of Andros. "Nai, we're just worried about your well-being," he explained gently. "Especially after what's been going on with the girls and you being attacked, we're very concerned that you're going to get yourself in danger if you leave the palace alone and without an escort like you've done before. We don't want you to be potentially hurt like the other girls were — it was luck that you were fine last time, but we don't know if you'll have the same luck if someone comes after you like they did last time," the king explained patiently.

Naida cringed, lowering her head slightly as her transformation dissolved in a flurry of bubbles in various sizes, leaving her in her still sopping wet outfit, which her father hurriedly moved to cast a spell to rectify, blasting her with a torrent of hot air that evaporated the water that soaked her clothes and hair as well as dried her bedsheets before they got entirely wet. "How much trouble am I going to be in?" she asked resignedly, hoping that even if she was grounded further, she wouldn't be denied the ability to use her devices — she _had_ to tell the other girls about her meeting with Hydrus.

The Fairy of Waves pursed her lips together in thought. "Well... it's not every day that you transform for the first time, so..." the woman sighed, pushing a stray curl out of her face when it got loose from the tight bun it was usually in for courtly proceedings, "... your grounding is waived, Nai. You're _still_ not to leave the place without telling us though, alright? And I'm reinstating a curfew time for you — ten each night, you have to be in your room. I _will_ have guards patrolling the hallways. I know that you're still going to try and sneak out, but I'll make sure that the guards are at least a little more competent than the ones that guarded _my_ doors when I was younger."

Naida's father almost snorted in amusement at the statement. "Either way, Nai," he continued gently, "you're not in any sort of trouble for what you've done so far, _but_ we really do want you to be safe," King Nabu stressed gently, reaching his other hand out to ruffle her mess of brown curls inherited from her mother. "We're just worried that you'll be in too much danger if you're out there unprotected. And speaking of that, we have something that we think you also deserve to know," he said, glancing over at his wife, who nodded, moving to sit closer to Naida, who sat up straight to pay her full attention.

"I just came out of a conference with the rest of the Winx Club," the Androsi queen explained patiently, folding her hands in her lap as she looked over at her oldest daughter. "Bloom contacted this woman, Selina, and we've managed to determine so far that Selina knows part of what's going on, even though none of us has the full picture just yet. We're working with Selina to ensure that all of this doesn't happen again and we catch whoever's responsible for this and give them the punishment they deserve. Right now, we might not have any answers yet, but we're getting close, Nai, I can feel it. So please, for our sake, don't go out again before this is all resolved.

Seeing Naida's expression, her father immediately followed up, saying, "It's only going to be for a few more weeks, Nai. Trust us, we're going to have all of this taken care of as soon as we can. All we need from you and the rest of the girls is your patience and cooperation to stay put, right here where it's safe until we can ensure that you're not going to be in danger. We just need your word to us that you're going to stay put, Nai. Please, listen to us just this once. We can allow you to do whatever you want, provided it's here in the castle."

Naida quickly weighed her options, biting down on her lower lip as she contemplated the pros and cons of trying to barter with her parents for more freedom. She knew, though, that she was pushing it as she was, and however reluctantly, the dark-skinned new fairy nodded reluctantly. "You have my word," she relented, stealthily crossing her index and middle fingers behind her back. It was a childish move of her, but she knew that if she gave her word so earnestly, it would make her feel too bad to sneak out when she had to later. "I won't sneak out of the castle again, and um," she said, fumbling over her words.

Her mother beamed and pulled her into a tight hug. "Don't worry, Nai. Rocksand isn't in any trouble at all." At the astonished look the Fairy of Oceans gave her, the woman just chuckled warmly. "What, you don't think a mother knows when her children are trying to purposely draw their attention away from something? I could tell that she was hiding something, Nai. Rocksand told us everything once we asked." Gently, the woman patted Naida's curly hair. "She's on house arrest too, though. If you're a target, I can most certainly assume that she will be too." Her voice had turned grim.

"Right." Naida's voice was weak now — she hadn't actually thought about that when she was sneaking out. If she was being targetted as the daughter of one of the Winx Club, then her younger sister would also be a glaring target. And if the attacker was focused on them in their capacity as the princesses of Andros, her sister would be next in line if anything happened to her — the next target for sure. She made an inward promise to herself to be more careful when she inevitably did sneak out — she wouldn't let anyone get their hands on her younger sister.

"You'd better hurry and enjoy what's left of the day, Nai," her father was saying as he stood up from the bed, adjusting his royal purple coat with a grimace. "We've got a lot of work to do, Nai. I'm sorry we can't stay for longer to talk, but your mother and I still have a ton of paperwork on the side we need to finish," he said apologetically. "I hope you understand that." A small but reassuring smile pulled at his lips as he reached over, gently patting the top of Naida's head in a familiar, warm gesture. "We'll see you at dinner, Nai?"

The Fairy of Oceans nodded. "I'll see you two at dinner," she echoed her father's words, offering him a bright smile and a beam as her mother gently kissed the crown of her head. "I'll make sure to enjoy the rest of the day — the weather looks like it's about to rain, so I'd better stay in any way." Waving at her parents as they exited her room, closing the door gently behind them as they went, Naida immediately made a straight beeline for her phone, locked in her desk drawer. Pulling out the device, she set up the conference call, placing her phone on the bed as the holograph screens projected up.

Tiara was the first to appear on the screen when she accepted the call, the brunette girl looking rather harried and dishevelled. The next to accept the call was Maho, and the silver-haired Solarian appeared alongside Mae, both appearing rather eager to speak as the look in their eyes showed. Following them was Harmony, then Lilliana, and finally Raven, each of the last three looking cautious and the latter two with their earphones plugged in. Once everyone was on the call, three people moved to speak at the same time — Tiara, Naida and Maho — and immediately, they stopped, looking awkwardly at each other in silence.

"One at a time," Raven interjected sharply before anyone could say anything further, the younger girl shooting the lot of them a critical look through her sharp blue gaze. "Seniority first. Maho, whatever you have to say, spit it our first," she instructed firmly, her voice steadfast and making it very clear that she wasn't going to tolerate it if the group started speaking at the same time again, causing another grand mess and chaos. "After that, Naida, you're up and make it snappy. Tiara, once she's done, you take over, and for the love of the Dragon, think out what you want to say, all of you, so we don't waste our time listening to you stumble over your words."

"This _can't_ wait," Tiara jumped in hastily as she waved her phone, plugging the cable into her device. "I found out why and who's after us, girls, this literally can't wait if we want to know what to do after this." She immediately resumed her frantic typing on her computer, and a file upload dialogue box popped up as the Fairy of Weather uploaded a video to the group chat. "I swear that none of you is going to believe this. It's so surreal, I swear! I was just sneaking out of the palace to go and buy something when they came straight up and _everything_ was spilt. I'm not kidding, girls!"

Maho leaned into the screen, staring at the loading dialogue box. "That's exactly what Mae and I were going to say, though," the silver-haired princess remarked, removing her sunglasses from the top of her head entirely and placing them on the table out of sight. "Mae just gave me an answer she found and we just finished putting everything else together when you called us." She shook her head. "Nonetheless, in that case, Tiara, I think you should go first. If what you're saying is true, Mae and I can confirm our suspicions. Now, unless you've also solved the case, Naida...?"

The Fairy of Oceans nodded. "I'll wait until the end," she offered to the group. "Compared to everything else the girls have said, my information isn't all that important, though I was told to make sure all of you hear it. Tiara, you can take the floor first once your video is done uploading — why's your connection so slow if you can stream a live video chat with all six of us, by the way?" she asked, noticing that the video was taking an awfully long time to upload. Her pulse was racing — just a little more than when the girl believed that she was almost going to drown in the oceans of Andros.

"The dang file's too big!" Tiara groaned, the brunette girl moving her fingers across the keyboard at astonishing speeds as she typed furiously away, her gaze concentrated on another screen beside the one she was using at the moment. "Give me a few more seconds — here, this should do it." With a few more keys entered in, the video finally uploaded completely and a pop-up notification showed up on Naida's end, asking for permission to play the video as per the girl's usual settings. The video began playing once permission was given, and despite some rustling and dimmed visuals, the video was quite clear, showing two women and their voices quite well.

"No. Way." Harmony gaped as she listened to the video, her navy eyes wide in surprise. "There's no way that we really lucked out like that and she really is responsible for all this, is she? That's too convenient. I can't believe that's really what happened," she protested, though she seemed to still be very interested in the video, replaying it several times on her device as the petite girl pursed her lips tightly together. She frowned again, brow knitting tightly together as she leaned into the screen. "Wait, but... let's say it's real... is she _really_ just doing this because she's a psycho and in love with _your_ dad?" she asked incredulously, pointing a finger at the screen, though it was obvious she was pointing at Raven.

"He's not my father!" Raven retorted sharply. "My father died in a fire four years ago." The mood immediately turned sombre; no one wanted to say anything over it when they saw the way the strawberry blonde was turning away to hide her face, Naida even managing to catch her visible eye glaze over with unshed tears. "Don't pity me!" she snarled angrily. "Mae, talk. You had something to say, didn't you?"

As if spurred on by the girl's angry snap, the Fairy of Forests obliged. "I talked with the trees around the forests," she explained as Maho switched the camera focus to the rosewood-haired girl. "They communicated with their brethren across the dimensions and one group of trees in a park on Whisperia relayed a message back to me, saying that this girl, Barbara Kyle, was talking to three girls, Irene, Suzanne and Deborah Burnthorn, and she said that someone was blackmailing her, saying that her mother did something bad in the past and now they're threatening to expose it to the world. It lines up perfectly with the video."

Lilliana frowned — the girl had been the only one who hadn't said anything up until now. "So that Jessica wasn't lying... she really is the person behind all of our troubles? But she looks like a nice person, even if she's a bit dark. I don't want to stereotype her, nor do I want to do anything like that for all Whisperians, but it sounds like they're all jumping to violence to solve their problems," she said softly. "Alright, so... what do we do now?"

* * *

"Well... if we've managed to figure it out by now, shouldn't we hand this over to our parents?" Tiara asked, the brunette glancing up at the rest of the girls through the holographic screen display Harmony was using. "I mean, they've been looking for information for our sake so that they could take care of this and make sure we're safe, so shouldn't we just help them finish this before it gets out of hand?" The girl grimaced. "I don't know about you girls, but mum was so mad at me for dashing into the heat of things that she really scared me. And after learning that someone who's big in the political world has a hand in this, I'm not sure I want to keep going deeper into this."

Harmony bristled a little as she heard her best friend speak about it, her temper starting to flare up as she slammed both of her hands, palms down, on the table she was sitting at, pushing her chair back a little as she stood up to glare down at the camera. "No way am I backing down from this now!" she declared angrily. "I might not have wanted a large hand in this from the start, but now I'm incensed. How _dare_ she drag us six into this because she's in love with someone who's already married? That woman's a psychopath and needs to be stopped."

Maho turned her gaze away, looking thoughtful and rather pensive. "This could get us into the middle of an interdimensional political scandal, Harmony. To be truthful, none of us has the required tact to handle a matter as delicate as this without causing a full-blown scandal and trouble for us and our families, but..." The silver-haired girl tossed her hair over her shoulder and huffed. "Nevertheless, my pride agrees with you, Harmony. Rationally speaking, we should hand this over to our parents and let them take care of this, but I've invested too much of my own time into this. I want to see it through. Who's with us?"

Lilliana cringed. "A-are you sure about this? It sounds like it's going to be a big risk to our safety, and after what happened when the three witches attacked us in Magix, it seems like we might get seriously hurt there. I got lucky with a broken arm and most of us escaped unhurt, but if we're going into a direct confrontation, there's a chance we're going to get more hurt... My mother would kill me if she learnt that I went ahead with this plan." She worried her lower lip, looking down from the camera as her hair fell over her eyes.

There was a brief moment of silence before someone else spoke, a chair skidding back on marble flooring as Raven stood up, leaning over to brace her palms on the surface of her desk. Her blue gaze was fiery, almost alight with the fire Harmony had heard was passed down along the bloodline of Domino to her. "I'm in," she growled angrily. "I'm with you, Harmony. I thought this would be bigger than a simple psychopath wanting a married man's affections — thought it would give us the answers to the stupid Dragons too — but this has gotten to me. I'm all for taking her down personally."

Naida was also silent, but she nodded in the end. "I don't like it either, but I guess it's worth a shot too," she said, her voice determined. "And that actually leads me to something. I found Hydrus today, girls — earned my Magic Winx too — and he told me something very important." She fell silent as the other girls all listened with bated breath, including Mae, who was listening with a fascinated look in her eyes. "There is upcoming darkness in this future, and only when all the Great Dragons are in sync with their wielders can it be beaten back forever."

"Upcoming darkness in the future," Tiara breathed silently, her eyes wide in thinly veiled horror and surprise. "I don't know about this, girls. It sounds really dangerous all of a sudden. I— I know I said I wanted for us to be like the Winx Club, but I'm wondering how our mothers did what they did at such a young age," she admitted, wincing. "Facing danger like that has a great possibility of death along with it and to have it all on our shoulders... our mothers really were brave to do what they did at sixteen. I'm not sure I'm able to do it."

Harmony exhaled slowly, looking at the girls with a grim look on her face. "That just leaves me and Lilliana before we can get to the Great Dragon," she said with a nod of the head. "We'll figure out a way. Tia, you're not alone in this, I swear. I'm scared about this too, but I don't want for all of this to be swept under a political rug and for this to all be forgotten between us. "We _need_ to see this through to the end. We need to go and talk to Barbara Kyle and get her side of the story. I know she's tried to kill us, maybe twice, if those witches were her doing, but if she's being manipulated too, maybe we can get her help. I'm not saying we forgive her for what she did — I'm going to be looking over my shoulder and guarding my back — but it's worth a shot."

"The enemy of my enemy is my ally," Maho agreed with a nod. "The Dragon knows that I won't be trusting that girl any time soon, but her mother is the Captain of the Whisperian Royal Guard. She's in the _perfect_ position to do something for us so that we can confront Princess Jessica Whisperia and defeat her once and for all. All agreed that we should contact Barbara Kyle?"

Lilliana exhaled slowly. "Oh, I have a bad feeling about this, but if we have no other choice, then we do it," she said softly, her voice somewhat timid. "But we need to be careful. My dreams have been dark recently, and I don't think I want to know what's going to happen. I... I'm in," she said with a heavy sigh, a resigned look on her face. "And Harmony and I still need to look for our Dragons."

Naida nodded. "I'm in," she said determinedly. "I'm going to take her down so that she doesn't get the bright idea to start coming after my baby sis."

"Count me in too," Tiara said with a nod of the head. "As long as my bestie's with me, I'm ready!"

Raven growled but nodded as well. "I'm in. Let's find Barbara Kyle and get her answers. Then, we storm the castle."

Mae clapped her hands together, looking absolutely star-struck. "I've just witnessed the formation of the Winx Club Junior," she gushed with a laugh, only for Maho to frown. "What, don't you like that?"

"Not being called the Winx Club Junior," the silver-haired girl retorted. "I'm my own person — I idolise my mother, but I don't want, nor do I need, to be known as a second-rate clone of her." She shook her head. "If we really want that... we need another name."

"Magix."

"Come again, Lils?" Mae asked, curious at the _non-sequitur._

Lilliana looked up at the girls again. "If we're the hosts of the Six Great Dragons of Magix, we represent the interests of Magix," she said softly. "Then, we're the Magix Club."

Harmony played with the name in her mind. "Magix, huh? The Magix Club. It has a nice ring to it, actually... Yeah! We're the Magix!" she agreed with a nod of her head, her pigtails bobbing as she moved. "Watch out, princess, the Magix is coming!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) This isn't really pertinent to the content, but if you had a chance to name the girls yourself, what club name would you have chosen for them?
> 
> 2) Again, a carryover from the previous chapter, who is this great darkness that's going to descend on the girls in the future? It might not even be in this installment, because I have a full tetralogy planned for the girls, or even a pentalogy (is that a word?) is I can manage it.
> 
> 3) Who's going to be next to achieve their transformation? (Hint: You can find a pattern in Maho's introductory chapter)


	22. Witches

"Well, this is it," Maho murmured as the silver-haired princess got off at the transport hub in Whisperia, her voice lowered and hushed so as to keep the conversation between the girls. She reached up, plucking off her silver-framed sunglasses and putting them away for the time being. She loved her shades as her eyes were quite sensitive to light normally, but they were incredibly distinctive, and the silver frames were incredibly hard to miss as a piece of evidence as to the person wearing them being her. Her mother had made sure to have the shades specially commissioned to fit Maho's face so that it would be the most comfortable fit for her to wear.

"It doesn't leave me brimming with confidence when you say that," Raven growled in a low voice as she followed the fairy's example, getting off the ship and standing beside the Fairy of the Moon. The girl pulled up her grey hoodie over her head, which only had the effect of washing out the colours of her hair and eyes for whatever reason, making her seem even more sullen than her usual black jacket did, though some of that could perhaps be attributed to the way in which her flaming hair usually stood out against the dark fabric. "Let's get this over with and find her — I want all of this to be done so I can go back and sulk in the Palace of Domino." She scoffed a little at the condescending tone she'd taken to say it.

Lilliana followed them, Naida by her side as the dark blue-haired Linphean pulled her long sleeves down over her wrist. "I'm still not sure this is going to go well," she confessed in a quiet voice, though to be honest, Maho had never known the girl to speak in anything _but_ a soft and quiet voice. She rubbed her upper arm through her jacket with a wince. "I'd rather leave it to our parents, but it really doesn't look like they're going to be doing much towards this in the near future, no matter what mum says to me about it." She exhaled slowly. "Let's hurry up before I lose my nerve," she requested in a low voice.

Naida nodded quickly, the dark-skinned girl folding her arms over her chest. "You bet I'm in favour of that," she agreed, her dark blue eyes darting around the crowd of people commuting to and from Whisperia to other parts of the Magix dimension. "This is getting really freaky, and I'm worried it'll spill over from just us to our family. I might be the only one here with a sibling, but I think all of you girls know what it's like, right?" She chewed on her lower lip anxiously. "I just want to keep Rocks safe and make sure that she's not caught up in all this crossfire. It's harder done than you might think."

"Well, we're all here now," Tiara called as the brunette gasped for air after running over to catch up to the group, Harmony jogging at a manageable pace beside her. The Zenithian princess lowered her head as she greedily gulped for air. "Let's find her. I've keyed in coordinates based on what Mae told us last time, and I think I've found the place. It's not too far from here, thankfully — just a few blocks away — but I don't know if she's even going to be there at this point of time, or if we even have the right place, unfortunately."

Harmony patted her friend's back reassuringly as she leaned down, taking her sneaker off — the shoelace having come loose — and tapping it upside down on the ground as a pebble fell out. Pulling a face, the girl put her shoe back on, and tied the shoelace again, her hands in fists and braced on her hips. "I've got faith in you, Tia," she said brightly with a smile. "C'mon, before we run out of time. People are going to discover that we're not where we should be soon, and it's going to be best if we can accomplish our goal to some extent before we're all caught and put under permanent house arrest for the rest of our lives." There was a semblance of a joke in her voice, but the girl was looking more serious than she usually was.

Raven nodded curtly in acknowledgement at what Harmony just said, and looking around at the signs in the station, she began making her way out to the exit, occasionally glancing over her shoulder to make sure that the group was following her. They made their way to the exit of the station in that way, occasionally slowing and stopping to ensure that the Magix Club didn't separate from the large crowds of people moving in and out of the area. Once they got to the exit, Raven stepped aside and allowed Tiara to take over with navigation as the girls made their way to the park where Mae had told them the trees had overheard the conversation between their target and three witches-in-training.

It was only minutes later when the girls arrived at the park, and to their luck, just as they arrived, a familiar girl with green hair and golden eyes was walking out from the park, garbed in denim and fishnets, while her hands were in the pockets of her ripped jeans. Barbara Kyle looked up at them and paled in realisation as she began another dead sprint to get away, but this time, Harmony was prepared, dashing forward and tackling the witch to the grassy ground, holding her in place. "Get off me!" Barbara yelled at the petite girl.

"Not until you answer our questions, Miss Kyle," Maho said, walking up to her. Summoning the Moon Stave to her hands, she pointed the staff weapon at Barbara's hands, casting a spell that bound the girl's hands together in front of her so the Fairy of the Moon could keep sight of them. She dismissed the Stave and motioned to Harmony to get off the green-haired girl. Slowly, warily, the fairy helped the witch up to her feet, a hand on her shoulder to keep her in place and stop her from running. "And we just want answers. We're not here to fight you."

Barbara eyed the group of six as the Magix drew closer to her, and she huffed, nodding. "Fine then," she relented. "But not here. It's too public. I have a barrier spell set up in the heart of the park and we can talk there. The Burnthorn sisters aren't there either, so I can promise that it's completely safe, and even if they do come, I'll tell them to step down. In exchange, you let me go. I'll tell you everything you want. Does that sound good to you?" she asked, pinning Maho with a glance that made it pretty clear she regarded the oldest of the six girls as their leader.

The silver-haired girl pursed her lips together in thought and then nodded. "It sounds fair. Alright then, but no funny business, and I'll only let you go once we're inside your safe zone," she warned. "And my weapon will be out at all times. Should you make one hostile move and I'll get you right back on the cuffs, do you understand me? Let's go." Maho kept her eyes open for any sign of an attack, but Barbara complied with her requests and led the Magix Club towards a clearing, whereupon she reached out to touch it, revealing a rippling barrier that opened up for the seven girls' entrance with a wooden cottage laying beyond the cloaking barrier. "That's pretty impressive spellwork."

The other girl grinned, Barbara clearly proud of the praise despite the circumstances. "Thanks. I'm very proud of staging it as I did too. It makes me virtually untraceable until I step out of its range. Really effective, you see." She moved towards the door and held up her hands to display the magical bindings. "Now, hold up your end of the bargain, please? I'll play nice, I promise," the green-haired girl said to Maho, though the fact that she even felt like she had to say the last part didn't really make it so that Maho had any confidence in her actually holding up her end of the bargain.

Nevertheless, the Fairy of the Moon summoned her Moon Stave to her hands and dispelled the bindings, though to her relief, Barbara indeed just opened the door and walked through it into a room that seemed like it could just barely fit the seven inside. With no complaint being aired by anyone — though if anyone did indeed make any comment about the tightness of the space, Maho felt like she might have snapped from the tension of it all — the Magix followed Barbara inside, where the girl plopped herself onto a chair. "Alright," Maho said, leaning her weight on the staff rather than sit in any of the three remaining seats. "Talk."

As the other girls got themselves comfortable — Tiara, Harmony and Naida going for the seats while Raven leaned on the wall close to the exit and Lilliana chose to just stand there anxiously — Barbara began her explanation, her expression sombre and stern. "It's a long story, but to keep it simple, my mother was... involved with something shady in the past, and now someone's holding it over my head so I'll cooperate and do it to get rid of you six girls. I guess you probably know that already, though, if you were able to find me already."

"We learnt that straight from the source," Tiara interjected, seated on her chair backwards, and leaning her arms on the backrest of the chair. "It's the princess of Whisperia, right? She's using the knowledge of whatever it is to blackmail you into doing what she wants and get us out of the picture." Her hands were gripping the backrest tightly, her knuckles almost white with all the pressure she was using on the wooden chair. "Look, erm, Barbara, right? I can't say this for _everyone_ , but I'm pretty sure that most of us don't want to die, and I'm sure you don't want to kill us. That's why we're here, I mean. We want to stop this, and if we work together, I'm sure we can do it, right?"

Barbara looked at the girl, pursing her lips together. "I don't want to kill you girls," she admitted. "That's why I got the Burnthorn girls to help me... I don't think I could stomach having blood on my hands, and that shattered window probably wouldn't have killed you as well as throwing an explosive spell would have. I guess I just couldn't do it." Her expression turned serious all of a sudden, and she stared at the group of six with a frown. "You... you want to expose Jessica Whisperia?" she asked incredulously. "Like, you want to expose her for what she's doing and fight her and defeat her, that kind of thing? That's a little... extreme, though. Whisperia would be launched into chaos if that happened, and my mother would be blamed for it if word ever got out."

The green-haired girl shook her head, standing from her seat and beginning to pace around the room with the limited space she had. "No, that's not possible," she said to herself. She paused, then inhaled deeply. "I didn't want to mention this to anyone, but... look, you girls want me to help you fight against the source that's trying to kill you, right? Here's the real story. The Trix Sisters — Icy Blanche, Darcy Noir and Stormy Nimbifer — have infiltrated the Whisperian High Council and are feeding Her Highness Jessica Whisperia lies." Her golden eyes shifted a little. "It's just a theory of mine, but I can't say that it's without basis."

Raven's eye narrowed. "Proof?" she asked, her words terse and short, but it wasn't hard to understand where she was getting from — Barbara had indeed tried to kill the girls, after all. "And why are you only saying this now? If you had the ability to find us and hunt us down, why didn't you go to someone else and ask them to help you? And you're claiming that something is real, then you come right back and say that it's just a theory," she accused. "That's already skewing the story. Give us even one reason to trust you after what you've tried to pull on us. How do we know that you're not just trying to pull us into a trap so that you can kill us?"

Barbara bristled. "Okay, fine, look, so I might be a little resentful of the Queen of Domino for leaving her best friend behind after discovering she was some kind of fairy princess, but I don't _want_ to hurt anyone," she said forcefully. "I might resent Queen Domino for not even telling my mother that she was leaving Earth forever, for not even contacting her closest and best friend for the longest time after she got a group of new, powerful friends, but that's neither here nor there. I'm just doing this for my mother. She's gotten through enough in her life, so I'm just trying to make her life easier. Look, I'm not going to hold onto a grudge for my mother, but I really do need help. If we can take out the Trix, then I can deal with Her Highness and convince her otherwise. If you work with me, I can promise that all of this is going to end without incident."

"This is crazy," Harmony said hastily. "Should we even do this? It's _insane_. The Trix are the hardiest enemies our parents ever faced, and look at us! Only half of us can use magic so far, we're going to get ourselves killed if we rush into this!"

Maho grimaced. "Then we don't rush," she said with a frown. "If we have the advantage of surprise, we might be able to get them."

"Plus, it might help us find the rest of the Dragons," Naida suddenly said. "They seem to be coming when we need them, like for Tiara and I. If we really are their hosts, they won't let us die, and if we win, then we're all safe from then."

"This is reckless," Tiara mumbled softly, wincing, "but if it'll stop all of this, I'm on board."

Lilliana just shook her head. "Oh... this is going to be a bad idea, but I don't think we have any other choice..." she fretted.

Raven narrowed her eyes, pushing her hair out of her face. "Then we're agreed," she said grimly. "We do this." She turned to Barbara with an almost menacing glare. "But if you try to backstab us, we'll make sure you regret it."

* * *

Lilliana followed tightly behind Raven as the group of six — now seven, with Barbara taking the lead — crept down the hallways of the Whisperian Royal Palace. Her hair was twisted back into a tight bun to prevent it from getting into her eyes if the group needed to run and flee. Feeling Raven's hand on her wrist, pulling her along quickly, the Linphean lady only just barely managed to cross the corridor before a guard marched down, not having seen the seven girls. "Thanks," Lilliana whispered quietly to Raven as they continued down the path of the corridor.

"I've got to split here," Barbara said, looking up and down the corridor. "To get a definitive upper hand, we need to use the Legendarium. My mother has the Legendarium locked up in the archives while she's on duty, so I'll need to go and get it from here. Don't worry, I'm not going to abandon you girls, I promise. Just go down the corridors, take three lefts and then one right. It's the corridor where I'm pretty sure the Trix are staying, so you should be able to find them there. Just be careful, and I'll meet you there in ten minutes max. Watch out for yourself." With that, the green-haired girl took a right down the hallway and disappeared from sight as she entered another room.

"I don't trust her," Harmony grumbled as Maho took the lead down the corridor, her navy eyes narrowed. "I swear she's going to stab us in the back once our guard is let down. She's probably leading us into a trap too..." She drew in a breath through her grit teeth as she ushered Tiara down the hall, her eyes darting around warily to avoid the group being possibly noticed and then captured by the guards, stopping once to tie her shoelace, which had come loose yet again. The possible consequences of that were... not ideal, to say the least, and it wasn't one that any of the girls present wanted to face themselves.

"Neither do I," Raven grunted, her hood drawn up over her head and her hair pushed back out of her face and out of sight from under the grey fabric. "Being here is bad enough, but she suddenly has to split? That doesn't give me any good vibes about her intentions in the slightest. I won't be surprised if she turns out to be working with the Trix and they're also out to kill us for whatever reason—" She suddenly shut up, motioning for silence as she listened, the other girls all falling into tense silence before no sound was heard, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "— or another," she finished lamely. "How many guards are here, for goodness sake?"

The Magix continued down their path that Barbara had pointed out for them, slowing, speeding and ducking whenever they caught sight of guards coming down the hallways. Finally, they made the right turn, and Lilliana felt a sense of dread creep down her spine as the group of six fell eerily silent, warily stepping along the carpeted floor of the corridor, afraid to make too much noise in case it drew unnecessary attention. A loud bang drew their attention, and Maho held out her hand in front of the group, stopping them in front of one door, where all the six moved closer to, sticking their ears close to the wall to hear what was going on inside.

"—shut up, Stormy. Your hotheadedness is always going to get us into trouble," a voice sneered, cold and mocking. "And if you mess it up now, we'll have to start all over from scratch, and Master is going to be very much displeased with us. I'm not going to get into trouble just because you were too impatient."

Another voice joined in, sounding irritated. "Oh, sorry, Darcy, that I'm too 'impatient' for you! We can't all remain in the shadows for thirty minutes while that stuck-up snob of a princess is dithering on and on about how she's going to save the world from those stupid pixies. Ugh, I don't get how normal people can stand her. She's such an idiot."

"That's enough, you two," a third voice cut in, harsh and scolding, immediately shutting the other two up. "Stop bickering like schoolgirls. Master is getting irritated with how little actual progress we're making in weakening the Winx Club. What we've done seems to be having the opposite effect so far, even, which isn't leaving him in a good mood."

"I told you that the Kyle girl wasn't going to be effective," Stormy said with a huff, "but no, Icy, you just had to go with Darcy's plan. The girl's too young, too soft to actually be a killer despite what she likes to act like. Her mother dearest has been sheltering her way too much. I say we go straight into hunting the pixies' brats down to kill them, and while they're suffering, we swoop in and capture them for him."

Darcy scoffed. "Oh please, Stormy. If we let you go after them, then we all know they'll beat us down without mercy because you'll be blurting out our intentions. They already hate us as it is — that's the entire reason we used Kyle, for goodness sake. She's Bloom's old best friend and her daughter is only sixteen. It'll draw more sympathy for the girl than we would have, and if she exposes the princess, then all the better for us, since we can pull some strings to serve as temporary rulers and dedicate more of its power and resources to Master's cause."

Outside the room, as the Trix sisters continued to bicker inside, Tiara pulled back and shook her head vigorously. "This is a bad idea," she said, her breath hitching in her throat. "We're totally out of our depth here — this is way over our heads." Her voice rose slightly above a whisper, thankfully going unnoticed in the rising shouting fest inside the room. The brunette Fairy of Weather took a step back, looking around for Barbara. "We should leave and go and tell this to our parents. They'll be able to deal with this."

Much to the group's surprise, Raven nodded her head, taking a step back from the room, looking very clearly perturbed by the Trix. "Let's move out of here," she urged in a low, but also urgent tone. "Forget Barbara Kyle — our safety first." Turning around, she looked at either side of the corridor and blanched. "Guards!" she hissed in a state of alarm, and the Magix collectively began their panic, crowding together as tightly as possible as they hurried down the other end of the corridor where the patrol guards weren't coming from.

On the way, Harmony's shoelace was loosened, and the girl tripped when Tiara accidentally stepped on it while hurrying to the exit, falling onto the carpeted floor while scrambling to keep up, making a small, muffled bang when she accidentally hit the wall.

"Shoot, Harmony," Naida gasped, turning around when she heard the thump, backtracking to help the girl up, but the damage was already done as the door they had just been standing at was thrown open, three women hurrying out.

A woman with mid-back-length, frizzy-looking navy hair glared at the brunette of the group, the woman in question sighing as she tossed her shoulder-length straight hair over her shoulder, snapping her fingers and throwing up shimmering illusions on either end of the hallway. "You brats!" the navy-haired woman, Stormy, from her voice, growled. "Hey... you're the Winx's brats! How the hell did you know we were here?" She shook her head. "Doesn't matter! You just made a big mistake, kids!" Crackling energy forming in her hands, she aimed and blasted at the girls, which all proceded to scatter quickly.

"Maho Magic Winx!"

"Tiara Magic Winx!"

"Naida Magic Winx!"

The three fairies of the group transformed to help cover their three other friends, and while Raven had managed to take over Naida's role and pull Harmony out of range, Lilliana had fallen behind as the girl had attempted to go back and help Harmony. Stuck in between the Trix sisters and the Magix, Lilliana began to run, gasping as another blast of crackling electrical energy hit the ground beneath her feet, tripping her up and making her fall onto the ground with a cry of surprise and fear.

"Lilliana, we're coming!" Naida shouted as she flew over, but a wall of ice that rose up, courtesy of Icy, who sported a pixie cut nowadays, prevented the fairies from reaching her in time. "Lilliana!"

Icy walked over, looking more irritated than anything else as she formed a spike of ice in the air above her head. "Well then, if we can't rely on the Kyle girl, I suppose we can end it just like this, hmm?" With a grin, she raised her hand up to slash her hands down. "Say goodbye, little pixie-in-training," she taunted, and she swung her arm down, only for the ice to shatter against a multitude of strong vines that had suddenly shot up around Lilliana. "What the—?"

"People like you never have any respect for the natural cycle," a low, female voice chastised, and the vined around Lilliana receded, revealing a woman garbed in a flowing dress that seemed to be made from leaves and flower petals. "You will never learn on your own, unfortunately, but thankfully, something can be done about it. I am a nurturing mother, not a professor, but still, allow me to teach you why you do not interfere with the cycle of Mother Nature."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) More of a show-pertinent question, but hey, who cares? Are the Trix sisters actual sisters, or is it just something they call themselves? I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
> 
> 2) Alright, how many of you guessed that the Trix would be back to serve under a new villain? Be honest here.
> 
> 3) Who might this 'Master' be, and what might he want?


	23. Bridges and Barriers

As the vines curled around Lilliana protectively, the girl gasped as she watched more vines grow out from crevices in the wall and creep in through the open windows, spiralling into drill-like shapes as they shot towards the Trix to encase them within temporary cages. The Linphean girl gazed up at the motherly woman standing in front of her, with braided brunette hair layered with gentle pink, feeling a sense of warmth and protection from the woman, whose dress of leaves and petals fluttered around like silk in the wind she created. "You're Alitura," Lilliana said softly, her long hair falling out of the hair tie she had it in and falling over her eyes.

Alitura smiled at her, reaching down and gently pulling her to her feet, taking both of the tanned girl's hands in her own and smoothing back Lilliana's deep blue hair out of her eyes. "Yes, yes I am," the woman answered, her green eyes twinkling in amusement. "It is lovely to finally meet you in person, sweetheart. I'm afraid we don't have much time, so let me tell you what to do from here, alright? Inform your parents and tell them to come and help you girls. You six may be powerful, but without Camena and Draco, you are not powerful enough. Tell your friends to run — it will be safer for you all then. Now, let me give you my power. I look forward to the day when you join your sisters-in-arms, my dear." With a light kiss to the forehead, the woman pulled back and transformed into a dragon covered in greenery and plant life, rushing at Lilliana and sinking into her.

"Lilliana Magix Winx!"

A bright light enveloped the girl as the marble floor shattered to reveal earth that swallowed her up entirely, forming a protective cocoon around her. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, vines of light swirling around them, and she swept her arms out, forming long gloves on her arms. Sweeping her arms over her body, enveloped in light, she created a halter top and a skirt from the vines that formed from the brightness, the form of a flower blossoming on the front of her halter top. Twirling in place, she tapped her heels on the ground individually, forming short boots around her feet before the cocoon of earth around her burst and she shot out, swirls of paint forming in place behind her in the shape of wings.

"Lilliana, Fairy of Muse!" she called out, her voice firmer than was normal. The magic that now swept through her made her gasp — it was amazing to witness it firsthand. A wrapped, glittering pink bandeau with a ruffled trim covered her upper torso, with the green and white form of a flower covering the front, one of the elongated petals connecting with a green choker to form the halter neck. Her ruffled skirt was layered, also glittering hues of pink, stopping shortly above her mid-thigh. Her boots and gloves were of a darker pink, with the boots only mid-calf while her gloves being fingerless gloves that extended up to her upper arm. Her wings were swirls of paint in pastel green and white, fluttering all the while to keep her up in the air.

Flying over to Maho, Naida and Tiara, the new fairy just barely avoided the firing of an icicle from Icy as the Witch of Ice broke herself free from Alitura's cage, a gasp leaving her lips as she hurriedly flew out of the way. "Get yourselves free," she told the girls frantically. "I'll cover you for as long as I can, but we need to get going and run to call our parents. We can't stand against them and win!" With that said to Maho, the _de facto_ leader of the Magix due to her age, Lilliana concentrated, forming a red sphere that built up in her hands before solidifying with a dark red shell. Worrying her lower lip, the girl flew as close as she could to the Trix without putting herself in danger and smacked the sphere into the wall and flying off like someone was chasing her.

No sooner has she left the area did the hardened shell of the sphere crack and release a cloud of gas that quickly began to flood the hallway, obscuring vision as Maho managed to shatter the ice that held the three Magix fairies captive. Lilliana darted off through the girls, evading the gas that was beginning to billow down the rest of the corridor to get to Raven and Harmony, who were most at a disadvantage at this stage, for they couldn't fly as the others could. "Come on!" the Fairy of Muse cried, pushing her wings as hard as she could to get to the two younger girls.

"Go, we'll cover you!" Naida yelled from the cloud as she sent a blast of glowing water at the Trix. "Deep Submerge! Call our parents and get to safety — we'll follow up in a while, I promise!" With a slight shriek, the girl flew out of the gas cloud, coughing a little before she shot right back in.

A blast of light from Maho briefly illuminated the silhouette of the Fairy of the Moon as she fired a beam from her Moon Stave at the trio of witches with a shout of "Crescent Beam!". The silver-haired fairy seemed to echo the Androsi girl's words, and she shouted for Lilliana to get Harmony and Raven out of the area.

"Yeah, they've got the right idea!" Tiara yelled back to them as she formed a crackling bolt of lightning that lit up her position. "We'll be fine, Harmy, I promise! Now eat this, you stupid witches! Lightning Bolt!" she hollered boldly, throwing the crackling bolt like a javelin as it soared through the smokescreen cloud.

Harmony scrambled to her feet, yanking Raven along as Lilliana flew above the two of them. "Give me your phone!" she yelled at Raven, and the strawberry blonde tossed the older model she'd been using at the petite girl, who caught it squarely in hand. "Lilliana, call your parents too — it would be faster if all three of us did it, but my phone's been smashed when I fell." Flipping open the outdated model, she began dialling her parents, while Raven steered her down the corridor and away from crashing into pillars. "Do we even have reception here?"

"Make an emergency call," Lilliana gasped in panic as a paintbrush formed in her hands. She trailed paint behind her as she flew, the paint strokes coalescing into words before condensing into the form of a bird. It was a form of magic her great-grandfather had taught her father, and she'd seen it in action enough times to know how to replicate it herself with the magic at her disposal. "Go, go to my parents and show them the message!" she urged the painted creature before she flew onwards with Harmony and Raven right under her.

"Dead end!" Raven shouted with a curse, yanking Harmony to a stop just as they reached a closed corridor, with the only further path a window that would lead downwards. However, the Whisperian palace was built for height like Cloud Tower, not for width like Alfea, and if the girls jumped, they would be falling at least ten stories downwards. Even if Lilliana tried to help them, her power would only be able to support one of the two girls, and the likelihood that she wouldn't have time to come back up for the other was growing. "What now?" Her hand shot up to catch the phone Harmony tossed back at her.

The petite girl grimaced when she saw Maho, Naida and Tiara flying back at them with the Trix Sisters hot on their heel. "I've called my parents — all we can do now is just try to survive and wait," she said, backing further up against the wall. "I honestly don't know what more I can do at this point. Let's just hope we can survive this!" She fell into a martial arts pose, her faltering courage apparent as she glanced behind her to look down at the long drop the window provided. "Oh, I've got a really bad feeling about this!"

"Tell me about it," the strawberry blonde uttered. "Look, Harmony, I'm sorry for my insults when we first met. I was being a brat — I didn't mean them." She moved slightly to back up against the wall as well, her brow furrowed together in deep worry.

"Now isn't the time for this, girls," Lilliana said in a hushed tone, anxiety filling her voice as she prepared another gas bomb, though her hands were clearly shaking at the thought of actually fighting with the Trix. "W-we can say all of this when we're all safe."

All six of the Magic girls were forced into the dead end now, the Trix having cornered them into the corridor with the only escape being a jump out of a tall window. Taking the advantage of the enclosed space, the trio of women were preparing what seemed to be their most devastating spells — Stormy gathering large amounts of lightning that frizzed her already kinked hair further, sparks dancing across her skin; Darcy concentrating large amounts of darkness into each of her hands as she prepared a powerful blast of dark energy; Icy freezing the water droplets in the air as the ground started being covered with frost.

"Say goodbye, brats!" Icy declared with a wild cackle of delight.

"Goodbye, brats!" Barbara yelled from behind the Trix. "Let's see how well you deal with the Whisperian Crystal Eaters — the beasts that devour witches with Vacuums! Go, and wreak havoc!" She commanded, and from the Legendarium she now held up, white light emitted as large, crystalline bears escaped the old tome to charge at the Trix witches, distracting them and leaving a chance for the group to escape. "Let's go, through the window!" she shouted at the Magix girls as she turned another page. "The Crystal Vines will slow our fall; through the window!"

The fairies deliberated for only a moment, and the four fairies flew outside, while Barbara, Harmony and Raven jumped out the window, all three bracing themselves for a hard impact before a cracking sound was heard, smooth crystal vines rising up to catch them before they reached terminal velocity. It was by no means a smooth transition — it was still quite a rough landing — but it stopped the girls' decent enough to let them slide down the smooth surface and land onto the ground as the crystals receded back into the ground.

Raven and Harmony tumbled onto the ground quite gracelessly, but Barbara managed to land on her feet, shrinking the Legendarium and putting it onto her belt loop as she helped the two girls up. "Let's go — they'll destroy those things soon enough. We need to get out of here before they come back down!"

The girls looked at each other and nodded. "Got it," Maho said, the Fairy of the Moon grimacing at the thought of facing the Trix again. "Let's go!"

But as the group of seven started making a break for it, a blast of lightning ripped open the ground at their feet throwing them all to the ground, and ice began to rise up, walling off the entire area they were in, and the Trix sisters flew down from the tower, all three looking incredibly angry and with murderous intent written plainly over their faces. The girls collectively flinched — they were in trouble now.

* * *

Icy sneered as she approached, snowflakes coming off her hand as she raised her hand up. "You little brats. Well, you're cornered now. Ready to die?!" she taunted with an almost hysterically furious tone in her voice. Had she not been in mortal peril, Raven would have laughed out loud at the ridiculous expression on the witch's face — blue eyes comically wide, her pixie-cut white hair messy and wild.

"Fusion Fury!" A gout of flame burst through the icy walls, shattering them to pieces and melting it into water before rushing on to impact Icy, throwing the witch onto the ground.

"Blazing Sun!" A beam of blinding light shot through the opening, concentrating before bursting out into a blinding flash that illuminated the entire enclosed area, forcing the girls to close their eyes and turn away before they were blinded by the light.

"Nature's Rage!" Growing vines shot out from the split open crevasse in the ground, lashing around the witches' legs and ensnaring them with thorns that sprouted from the smooth green vines.

"Omega Division!" Several pixellated symbols appeared, shooting out thin lines that connected with each other and neatly segregated the trio of witches apart as electrified panels appeared between the lines to form walls.

"Ultrasonic!" Glowing purple rings were thrown out, dissipating into glowing shockwaves once they impacted with the Trix sisters, forcing the witches down to their knees and clutching their ears in pain.

"Morphix Hail!" Pink spheres of energy were formed overhead before they started shooting down on the Trix, each impact making them explode into smaller spheres that burst into sparks when hit.

"Cobra Fang!" A green blade of energy was formed in the air before breaking into smaller, curved blades that rushed at the witches, hitting them hard with deep cuts.

Of the seven different voices, six were intimately familiar to each of the Magix girls, and the last one had Barbara's eyes widening. For good reason too, as six Enchantix fairies were seen flying towards them, the Winx Club led by Bloom as always, while a green-haired woman that could be recognised as Selina Kyle was by the redhead's side.

The former Fairy of the Dragon's Flame, now the Fairy of Flames, had her gloved hands enveloped in flames, her long hair fluttering in the breeze as she landed, her expression angry as she approached the Magix girls with a defensive posture, standing in between them and the Trix. Her Enchantix form, like all the other Winx Club fairies, had evolved over the years, now much more majestic and beautiful, with the short ruffled dress now being longer and more flowing, and her wings larger and more detailed, jewels dripping from the fluttering wings. "Run, girls," she told the group of seven. "Your fathers are at the transport hub and they're coming over right now. Go to them and you'll be safe. Let the adults take care of this!"

Stella Solaria flew over, her long pink and orange dress fluttering in the wind as she hurried up to Maho, taking her daughter's hands in her own gloved hands. "I'm so glad to see you safe, Moonbeam," she said softly, pulling the girl into a hug. "Go to your father — your mother always knows how to deal with this, I promise. I'll be fine and so will you." Kissing Maho on the forehead, the Fairy of the Shining Sun turned around with light sparkles emitting from her hands, ready to fight back and deliver a fierce fight against the Trix sisters for daring to even try and hurt her only daughter.

"Lilliana!" Flora Lisandre called out to her daughter, the blue-haired girl being pulled into a tight hug, as the brunette spared a moment to fret over her. "Oh sweetie, I'm glad you're alright," she said softly. "I'm glad you've managed to transform, but I hope you know how worried your father and I are for this. Your father and I received your message — thank goodness — and he's going to be here in a while to help take you girls to safety." Smoothing Lilliana's hair back from her face, the woman smiled gently as she tucked a strand of her long brunette hair out of her face, her long pink dress trailing behind her as she flew into the air again to aid her friends.

The Fairy of Technology shot down from the skies like a purple missile, Tecna Zenith-Cysect visibly fearful for her daughter, calling out for both Tiara and Harmony as she arrived, her short purple outfit now with a skirt and a long train flowing from behind her as she flew down to them. "Thank the dragon that you're alright!" Reaching out to pull both girls into a short hug, Tecna pulled back and put a hand on both girls' shoulders. "Musa will be here in a while and she'll tell you where to go," she told them firmly. "I have to go and maintain the barriers for just a little longer so you girls can escape. Be careful."

As she flew off, Musa Melody-Chang shot down, the Fairy of Music reaching her daughter and her daughter's best friend, her two-piece outfit now forming an asymmetrical dress with a tight skirt. "You're so grounded, Harmony," she told her daughter, putting a hand on her shoulder as she did the same with Tiara. "Your fathers are on their way. It's a few blocks straight down, but as long as you keep running, you'll be able to meet them before they arrive here. Got it? Good." She kissed the crown of Harmony's head and pulled back, her eyes narrowed. "I'm going to make sure those witches get what they deserve for daring to hurt my daughter!" Flying off to join the other Winx Club fairies, she left a fluttering trail of fairy dust in her wake.

Aisha Andros was the last of the Winx Club fairies to arrive on the scene, only moments after Musa, and she hurried immediately to Naida, helping her up from the ground hastily. "You're going to be re-grounded after this, Naida!" she told the girl sternly. "We're going to give you so much grief for this, I swear. Don't you get Rocksand to help you sneak out, do you hear me?" Her green dress trailed at the back, with a longer, looser skirt that billowed freely in the wind, complementing her green wings. "Your father is leading the group as we speak. Go to him and he'll get you and the rest of the girls to safety. Go, now!" With that said, the Fairy of Waves flew back to join the battle, exchanging attacking with the Trix who had now broken free of their imprisonment.

Selina Kyle was the last to arrive, dressed in an armoured jacket over a rugged-looking adventurer's outfit, and while she said nothing in particular to Barbara, the woman did hug her daughter tightly before proceeding to usher her after the Magix girls, turning then to join the Winx Club in their battle against the Trix, looking angry and serious as she formed a green energy snake in her hands before she sent the attack at the witches, fury blazing in yellow eyes as she stood defensively by Bloom Domino-Peters, her hands — covered in fingerless gloves — blazing with sickly green energy that was not unusual for a witch. "You three are dead!" she roared angrily at the Trix. "How dare you trick Her Highness like this!"

"Who's tricking me?" Raven heard as the girls began running — or in the case of the four fairies of the Magix Club, flying — off towards the direction pointed by the Winx fairies. She chanced a glance back and recognised the woman from Tiara's recording — the one with the black hair, Jessica Whisperia — enter the castle courtyard where the battle was happening, and before the Winx Club could say anything in their defence, the Trix suddenly began speaking in pleading fearful voices.

"Your Highness! They're attacking us and calling us criminals!" Icy exclaimed.

"Selina Kyle's gone rogue; this is treason!" Stormy shouted.

Darcy had vanished, but anyone who had eyes could see that the Trix were now under some sort of disguise magic that changed their appearances. And for whatever reason, this had fooled the Whisperian princess despite the transformation having only been thrown up moments after her arrival on the scene, where she surely would have been able to see the change happen. Something fishy was going on, and Raven was more than willing to bet that some form of mind control magic was involved in all this somehow, even if she couldn't give a definite answer as to how.

"You traitorous wench! I can't believe you! My father and I have sheltered you, and given you such a high rank in our guard, and here you dare to do this to us? How dare you, Kyle!" Jessica was shouting, and Raven felt like facepalming at how obviously this woman had been placed under some form of mind control. It was either that, or she was a complete idiot and even as politically-disinclined as she was, Raven would pity her subjects if they had to live under the rule of such an utter idiot. "I'll have your head for this, you witch! Enchantix!"

Raven chanced a glance back, seeing princess now garbed in a black and red dress with a corset accent, with golden barefoot sandals and red and gold butterfly wings. It was notably not as elegant and mature as the Winx Club, seeming to be a fair bit more juvenile, to say the least, with a short skirt and a younger, immature look compared against the long, flowing skirts and graceful outlines of the Winx Club fairies. A brief spike of worry rose in the strawberry blonde for the sake of the fairies and the single witch with them — what would this lead to?

"Whisper of Eternal Sleep!" Jessica yelled, blasting a red and black sphere at the Winx Club, which they quickly evaded, though the blast continued in its path, narrowly avoiding the girls before it smashed into the ground. "Stay still, you useless fairies! Eternal Sleep!" she shouted again, blasting the same attack once more, and yet again, it missed before hitting the ground. "Argh!"

Raven just turned her attention on getting as far away from the fight as possible now, hurrying quickly after the girls and ensuring that Harmony didn't fall behind due to a loose shoelace and Tiara had someone behind her even as the Fairy of Weather flew to keep pace with the others. As she made the mad dash to safety, she heard a cry from the Winx Club, and instinctively, all seven of the girls turned back, six recognizing the voices as being from loved ones in need of help while the last was just in a state of panic already. Raven's heart was racing as she glanced back, seeing Stella Solaria fly over to shield the former Fairy of the Dragon's Flame with a barrier of light as the disguised Trix attacked under the pretence of self-defence, the redheaded fairy having fallen to the ground nursing a severe injury.

Jessica scoffed as she flew in the air, her hands glowing with power, having been the one who had dealt the blow. "You're weak," she insulted. "And to think you're the one with the Dragon's Flame? You can't even protect it! Hah, and you deserve what you've earned? Just give it all up!" she yelled at Bloom, preparing the next blow.

The redhead groaned as she got to her feet, the Queen of Domino using her wings to support her. "Unlike you, I can fight back with or without the Dragon's Flame!" she yelled back, coughing in the middle. "You can't even hit me — that was Darcy's blow, you entitled princess!" Leaning heavily on her best friend's shoulder, Bloom gathered energy in her hands again, her eyes narrowed even as Icy looked shocked.

The four fairies of the Magix and Barbara shared a glance. "We're going back," they said, almost in unison, and the five immediately shot over to help their respective mothers.

Harmony was about to do so too, but Raven reached out to snag her wrist and pull her back with a shake of the head. "They can fly, we can't," was the only explanation she gave as Raven continued running towards safety. "If we go, we'll just be another liability that they have to protect and they'll have to divert their attention away from themselves to us, and they'll just be more injured than they already are. Don't be a burden!" she yelled at Harmony as both of them sped down the street at their fastest pace.

"She doesn't have the Flame anymore?!" Stormy could be heard shouting in indignation. "Then who does?"

"Her brat, you idiot!" Icy yelled back, the voices and sounds of the battle starting to dim out a little from the distance. "Darcy, get the girl! We'll need her!"

Raven barely registered this before her world went dark, and unable to see, she tripped, falling forward with a sharp inhale. At Harmony's distressed call, asking if she was alright, the strawberry blonde nodded, trying not to completely panic from the unexpected blindness. "I-I am, I just can't see," she attempted to explain to the petite Melodese girl, trying to find where the other was as she got up unsteadily. Another hand wrapped around her wrist as Harmony pulled her to her feet, and Raven let Harmony lead her onwards.

"There you are, you little brats!" Darcy's voice came from behind them as Harmony suddenly let go of Raven's wrist, giving her a slight jerk as the petite girl moved to stand in front of the strawberry blonde. "Oh, trying to protect your friend? That's cute, but you two aren't going to be any challenge for a senior witch like me—!"

"Get away from my daughter, Darcy!" The sound of a Phantoblade turning on was almost painfully obvious to Raven as she blinked a few more times, her vision finally beginning to return, the darkness bleeding away as she looked up from the ground to see Harmony in front of her, arms out, and King Sky Eraklyon in front of the girl, a blue Phantoblade broadsword in his hand as he threatened the witch, defending the two girls behind him. "You and your sisters have done enough to our family. If you lay a hand on my daughter or her friends, I'll personally tear you limb from limb!"

Raven tugged on Harmony to fall back, getting to her feet, a warm feeling rising in her heart. She didn't think that she understood why he was doing that — he had left her to someone else, hadn't he? He hadn't wanted her, so why was he defending her and Harmony like this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) Out-of-topic question, but which transformation do you like the most out of the shows? Which transformation would you have rathered the Winx have used?
> 
> 2) Is Jessica genuinely misguided, or has she been brainwashed? It might not be a concrete answer.


	24. Taking Down the Trix

King Sky Eraklyon roared in anger as he swung his modified Phantoblade, using the reflective blade to deflect each spell that Darcy was throwing at him with great skill and precision. Out of the corner of his blue eyes, he saw his daughter — his only daughter — get back to her feet with Harmony and begin to back up. Raising his voice and desperately hoping the girl wouldn't decide to be rebellious now, he yelled, "Girls, get out of here! Go to Riven — he's going to be coming up in just a few minutes!" With another roar of anger, he lunged forward and swung at Darcy, landing a shallow cut along her arm that only enraged the witch further, much to his dismay. Still, even under a renewed hail of spells, the king kept up his defence in order to let his precious child escape unharmed.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the magenta hair of his long-time friend approach. King Riven Melody-Song's voice barked out sharp orders as he would do with his army and troops, and like a soldier, Harmony shot up straight before the petite girl grabbed Raven and rushed off towards the direction where the other Specialists were sure to be. A purple blade soared through the air to shear off several inches off Darcy's hair, narrowly missing the witch's head, which made the brunette gasp in fear. "Took you long enough, Riven!" the blond king yelled at the king of Melody. "Any slower and I'd have lost the battle!"

"Quit your lying, Sky," Riven retorted, pulling the purple blade back with a steel chain. "We all know that you're the best fighter of all of us. You couldn't possibly be taken down by someone like her. C'mon, stop joking. You can do it later with Brandon and we'll joke then." The chained sickle that was his weapon in his hand, the man swung the weapon around like a lasso before he threw the blade at Darcy again, forcing her to duck and dodge away with a gasp. "Your turn to shield us, Sky!" he called, tumbling out of the way of a sickly purple spell thrown at the two kings.

"Not quite!" King Timmy Zenith-Digit called to them as the Zenithian king took aim and blasted a few bolts of energy from his raygun at the witch. "Let us have some work to do, you two! Stop hogging the centre spotlight!" There was a joking tone in the brunette's voice as he hurried over to them, the barrel of his gun smoking as he lined up another shot at the Witch of Illusions. "How the heck did the Trix get loose from their prison? We designed each of theirs specifically to combat their strengths and exploit their weaknesses."

A green Phantoblade deflected another spell barrage from hitting King Brandon Solaria-Perez and Duke Helia Lisandre, and glowing golden strings shot out to bind the witch's arms together to her body as the Linphean Duke exerted all his effort to bring her down to the ground, finally managing to overcome the force of the witch's levitation with a grunt and a harsh pull, yanking her down onto the ground with a harsh crash. "Nabu, now!" Helia commanded, hands firmly gripping onto the glowing strings to keep the fight with Darcy's levitation.

"Got it!" King Nabu Andros-Kasper barked as he hastened up, his staff glowing with purple rings that immediately began to surround the witch, tightening into firm bindings around Darcy that completely restricted her movement, preventing her from attacking them any further. "Let's see you get out of that," he said with a glare at the witch as he retracted his staff to secure it on his belt. "Where are our girls?" he demanded almost immediately from the blond king, his volume rising a little in frustration and anxiety. "And the other Trix witches?"

"Probably with our wives," Riven grunted, hooking the blade of his weapon on his belt and coiling the chain around his arm. "We should hurry up to rendezvous with them. Some of us need to keep an eye on this witch before she gets a chance to break free — we can't give her an opportunity to get out of our sights. How about this, Sky and I head over to help with the other two crazies, and you all escort the girls and Darcy to a safe place where we can go back to clapping her in cuffs and keeping the kids safe until further notice?"

There was a quiet murmur of discontent among the men, but Sky stepped forward to support the decision. "Riven and I are the best offensive fighters here, no offence meant, guys," he said diplomatically. "Nabu, you're the one maintaining the binding spell and Timmy, you have the stun guns. Brandon and Helia, you two are the best pilots of us. We should split up here and do what we're best in so we can maximise our efficiency. I don't think we have to worry about our wives — to be honest, we all know that they're far better fighters than any of us."

His statement drew murmurs of agreement from the other ex-Specialists, and the group agreed on Riven's separation of the group. With a blow to the back of Darcy's head to knock her out, the group split up, with everyone else except Sky and Riven hurrying the way they had come, along with Darcy, to head back to the ship where Raven and Harmony no doubt were waiting for the adults, safe and sound. Meanwhile, Sky and Riven hurried the way they were going to head to the palace and help out their respective significant others.

"Harmony is so grounded after this," Riven growled as they arrived at the palace. "Musa!" he shouted out as he arrived on the scene, bringing out his magenta Phantoblade that the Fairy of Music had commissioned crafted as a wedding present — Sky would know; Eraklyon's finest smiths had been commissioned for the project. The king of Melody reached his wife and used the blazing plasma blade to deflect the ice spell fired at the fairy by Icy. "You okay, Muse?" he called over the chaos of the fight, moving to stand back to back to the powerful fairy.

"Riven!" Musa called, audible delight in her tone as she gathered a bright purple and red mixture of energy in her gloved hands before firing it back at Icy with an angry scowl. "I'm so glad you're here! Where's Harmony? She ran off earlier — is she safe?" The concerned mother shot up into the air on her wings to evade a blast of ice that Riven was forced to dodge to a side to avoid. "Can you get a brain, Icy?" Musa yelled at the Witch of Ice, a scowl on the Melodese fairy's face as she confronted the white-haired witch that the Winx Club had faced since their first year at Alfea College.

"Girls, split formation!" Bloom suddenly called to the Winx Club as the redheaded fairy flew over to Sky, taking his gloved hand with a smile of relief. "Stella, Tecna, you two and your kids join me and Sky up against Icy — she doesn't stand a chance!" Fire blazed in her blue eyes as she faced the ice witch, throwing out a gout of flame to counter an icicle that was soaring towards her. "Not today, not any day, Icy! Musa, Flora, go for Stormy! Naida, join them. Selina, Aisha—" she began, throwing out her arms to raise a wall of fire to protect her from another blast by Icy.

"Don't need to say anything more, Bloom, we've got it!" Aisha called, the dark-skinned fairy flying over to the two witches fighting with the Winx and their children before the trio headed over to the Enchantix fairy in black and red — Princess Jessica of Whisperia if Sky recalled correctly. "You can count on us to take care of that, don't worry! Morphix Blast!" the Fairy of Waves suddenly called to defend herself against an energy attack by Jessica. "We've got our work cut out for us, so let's get started! Move, move, move!"

And with that, the battle began again, the tides turning with the new coordination by the Winx Club's _de facto_ leader. The Solaria fairies barraged Icy with blinding lights, distracting her and rendering her almost unable to fight back, while Tecna and Tiara combined their efforts to form restrictive barriers to keep the other combatants safe and sound. Meanwhile, Bloom and Sky worked together, the former melting away all stray blasts of icy energy while Sky deflected each blast that passed by Bloom in her haste, keeping the former Dragon's Flame wielder safe. Finally, with a combined Convergence spell by the five fairies — though Maho and Tiara did seem to have a little trouble with the growing magic — as well as the work that was already done, they landed a solid hit on Icy, sending the Witch of Ice spiralling back onto the ground. Immediately, Sky sprinted over and snapped a pair of magic-cancelling handcuffs shut around the witch's wrists.

"Gotcha!" Sky exclaimed with a smirk of victory, pinning the ice witch down as his wife flew over to him. He dug through his pockets before finding his phone, and he handed it to Bloom. "Call Brandon for me," he told Bloom. "We need to get another two cells ready for Icy and Stormy once we transport them back to the ship. They're going back to the Omega Dimension... except Icy. She's going to Light Rock Monastery again, and I think we can convince them to put her into special isolation." He huffed a little when the witch tried to free herself, further digging his knee into her back to keep her down. "We're going to make sure that they don't get free this time."

Meanwhile, Musa and Riven were wrapping up their end of the battle as well, the two giving the directions out to Naida and Lilliana as the two younger fairies defended against the Witch of Storm's attacks. Between Naida's water attacks to continually distract the witch and Lilliana's smokescreens to cover the group, Musa and Riven were able to effectively tag-team the witch and deal powerful blows to her that knocked her out of the battle and out cold on the ground. Riven made sure to slam the flat edge of his magenta Phantoblade down on the side of Stormy's head just in case she was just pretending to be unconscious, and to finish the job, snapped a similar pair of anti-magic cuffs around her wrists. "Another down!" he called over to Sky, who shot him a thumbs up in response.

That just left one more threat to take care of, but it already seemed to be taken out, as Aisha and Selina were no longer in defensive postures, but were standing quite close to Jessica, who was on the ground and looking rather confused. "Bloom!" Aisha called over to the redhead. "Come over here for a moment! Girls, stay with Sky and Riven and make sure Icy and Stormy don't get loose. Stella, Flora, Musa, Tecna, come over here! I think we have a case of a bad spell and brainwashing here. She looks confused and her eyes are a little glassy — I think they've been having Darcy control her or something."

Bloom analysed the black and red-clad Enchantix fairy with a careful blue gaze. "She does look a little dazed," she noted. "If she was controlled, then a good dusting from our wings should take care of it and set her free." Motioning to the other fairies of the Winx Club, they all rose into the air and turned to face outwards, their wings facing in and together. In unison, the six fairies fluttered their wings, letting the fairy dust from their wings mix and fall onto Jessica. Flying back to land on the ground, Bloom watched carefully, but soon the black-haired woman jerked upright, holding her head with a groan as she blinked a few times.

"Ugh, what happened?" Jessica groaned, blinking blearily. She looked around, her brow furrowing. "Captain Kyle? What's the Winx Club doing here? I don't think I've invited them over for publicity or to set up a new trading agreement." She shook her head with a frown, rubbing her temples with a groan of pain. "Ow... Ugh, I swear I've got to be seeing things. Is that Sky? Is he here to see me?" she cooed, definitely sounding a little drunk, but her tone was not malicious.

Sky just grimaced as he hauled Icy up to her feet, shooting the Witch of Ice a glare when she tried to escape by pulling away. "Not this time, Icy," he said heatedly. "You've caused enough harm to this place already, not to mention all your crimes to the entire dimension of Magix!" As Bloom walked over to him, his wife releasing her transformation, he eyed Jessica out of the corner of his eyes. "Is she...?"

"Diaspro's cousin," Bloom confirmed. "And just as delusionally in love. I think she's going to be fine — they were using some kind of dark magic on her, beyond what Darcy usually has. It's... not a good sign, to say the least. Anyway, we should get Icy and Stormy into cells so we can send them right back to their prisons. Sound good, Sky?"

"Yeah," the blond king said with a small smile. "Let's go, Bloom."

* * *

Meanwhile, Harmony and Raven had gotten onto the ship that the Specialists had piloted to get to them, the red ship one that had clearly been taken from Red Fountain judging by the school's emblem emblazoned on the side. The two girls were seated at a table, both silent and unsure of what to say to each other as they stared. Finally, Raven opened her mouth to say something, though, at the same time, Harmony did the same. Both fell silent once more to allow the other to speak, and once they saw the other had fallen silent, they opened their mouths again to speak. The girls repeated this a few more times before Raven broke away from the pattern and shook her head, leaning back in her seat and folding her arms over her chest.

Before it could get worse, Timmy cleared his throat from behind them, drawing the attention of the two girls. "So, your first encounter with the Trix," the man said, somewhat awkwardly. "To be honest, I don't think any of your parents or us wanted this. This... well, was kind of unexpected." He scratched the back of his head. "I hope you girls know that none of us wants you to be involved in all of this... but I think I'll save myself the lecture." He grimaced.

Nabu sighed as the King of Andros approached from behind the Zenithian King. "Timmy, let me," he said in a fondly exasperated voice. "Keep an eye on Darcy, alright?" With a pat to the brunette's shoulder, he sent the other man off and faced the two girls with a friendly smile. "The Trix... I'm honestly sure that you know how they've been a thorn in our sides for a while, right? They've kind of been an issue even since your mothers' first years, and they've been at it until now. It's... kind of remarkable, their persistence." He shook his head. "Anyway, from stealing Bloom's Dragon's Flame in her first year, they've come a long way, and not in the good sense, either."

Brandon scoffed as he poked his head in from the front of the ship, where he and Helia had been coordinating the controls to maintain the energy for the containment cell at the back. "That's kind of the understatement of the year, Nabs," he threw out casually. "Helping Darkar steal the Codex pieces, helping Valtor nearly take over the Magix dimension... I'm just surprised we didn't see them at all the year after. The one cell that could have held them didn't even do it for more than one year. And here I thought I'd gotten the perfect design for their cells down too after the... Oritel incident..." He cleared his throat. "Anyway..."

"Well, they're back to helping another master by doing their dirty work," Harmony grumbled, and that immediately got both men's attention.

"I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" Nabu asked cautiously. "Harmony, did you just say that the Trix are serving a new master?" His brow furrowed. "Well, Brandon, I guess that explains how your 'perfect design' fell through — they had help escaping... again. If someone took the trouble of releasing them, it either means that we have a new threat on the scale of Darkar and Valtor, or they've managed to get lucky and get a weak-minded fool that they can control. I wouldn't bet on the latter, though," he grumbled. "No one capable of breaking down your defences would be an idiot."

Brandon grimaced. "That's bad, damn it." He paused at the look the Androsi king was shooting him, and sheepishly, the man scratched the back of his head. "Kids, ignore that last statement," he said with a nervous chuckle. "And don't tell your parents... they'd kill me twice over for that slip." Nevertheless, he shook his head, running a hand through his short brown hair. "Still, don't you girls worry about that. Just let the adults take care of it. We've taken care of this enough times, so this won't be a problem... I hope," he muttered, before yelping in surprise when Nabu elbowed him in the side with an exasperated sigh. "What?"

"You say you'll take care of it, but what have you actually managed to do?" Raven asked, arching a brow. "If you haven't noticed, Your Majesties," she said with a dry and mocking tone, "we've been able to do more than you have. We managed to even get to the Trix in the first place while you've barely been doing anything. If we had actually left it to you adults to take care of, then we would have been waiting for months, maybe even years for this to be solved, and at that point, the Trix might have already succeeded in their plot," she said almost idly, though her tone was flat, as was the pointed look in her eyes.

Nabu frowned, folding his arms over his chest. "I'm sorry we couldn't have been working faster, but you need to understand that even if we're monarchs in our own right, we can't make the broad strokes that you have been doing. We need to be acting with delicate hands, and that requires finesse and caution. We've been making progress in our own right, but yes, it's been at a slightly slower rate because we're also dealing with many other things at the same time. And there's also something you have to take note of, of course. The only reason you've been able to get as far as you have is that you're not like us — no one's wary of you. You're too young to be known publically, so no one has any cautions in regard to you. Once you're older and more established, your path is going to be much harder."

"That said!" Brandon called, cutting into Nabu's speech before it could go on. "Tell the other girls to be careful and not test your limits as a group. Whatever's going on here, it's definitely not something that you can handle considering your age. Leave it to the adults, girls, I'm serious. Whatever it is, you're going to be in serious danger if you want to tackle it head on yourselves. Don't put yourself in danger; more often than not, you'll be in deep trouble that you can't get out of yourself. Whoever that master of theirs is, they're not going to be a good person, girls. We're really just looking out for you, okay?"

Nabu nodded, but before they could say anything further, Helia stepped out from the front of the ship, holding a phone out to Brandon. "It's Bloom," he told the two men. "They've got Icy and Stormy in cuffs and are bringing them over at this moment. Turns out that the Trix were using Darcy or some kind of magic to control Jessica of Whisperia, but they've broken the spell with their fairy dust. No one's hurt, so we don't need any medical aid, but what we do need is three containments unit ASAP so we can ensure that they don't slip from our fingers, again."

"Roger that, Helia," Brandon said with a nod of the head. "I'll meet them at the base of the ramp and help them get to the back of the ship. Timmy should be there already, so call them and tell Sky and Riven to get them to the back. Nabu, come on, we'll need to be watching at the back too just in case they start to get a little unruly or something." And with that, he glanced once more at the girls before he headed out the ship to go down and meet the other group.

With a sigh, Nabu shook his head before he walked down after the brunette man.

Raven glanced back at Harmony, and before they could repeat the scenario from earlier, the strawberry blonde quickly spoke, "I'm definitely not going to let this slide," she said firmly. "Even if it's dangerous, we're too far involved at this point. Drawing back is going to mean that we're not going to get our answers at all, and I'm not happy with that response." She paused. "Do we have an agreement?" she finally asked carefully, not wanting to cross any boundaries that were still set up between them.

Harmony huffed, folding her arms over her chest. "You definitely bet!" she said firmly, navy eyes blazing with anger and fury. "I'm not going to back down after they've attacked us. We might have been out of our depth this time, but we're this close to solving our problems, I swear. This close. All that's left now is for me to find Camena and for you to talk to Draco and we can deal with all of this entirely. Hopefully, we'll be able to get some answers from them too, and it'll help us take care of all of this before long."

Raven nodded. "Right. Do we have an agreement, then?" she asked, holding out a hand for the petite girl to shake.

Harmony smirked a little, taking Raven's offered hand and giving her a firm shake. "We do, friend," she said with a nod of the head. "We're going to get to the bottom of this."

"And we're not giving up until we do," Raven affirmed.


	25. Winding Down

"Ahh, it's finally over!" Tiara whooped in joy as the six girls each raised their glasses of tea or juice to the middle of the rounded table the Magix Club were seated around. The glasses clinked together, the rowdier of the girls — Tiara, Harmony and Naida, that was — bursting into another round of cheering. The brunette giggled, almost drunk with the glee she was feeling as she sipped her apple juice through the curly straw in her glass — hey, she was allowed to indulge herself with silly things like that sometimes, wasn't she? Teal eyes sparkling, the fairy placed down her glass. "So, what's next?" she asked cheerfully, tilting her head to a side as she regarded each of the others.

Lilliana was silent as she stirred some sugar into her tea, the dark blue-haired girl looking contemplative as she raised her cup to her lips and took a tentative sip of the sweetened golden liquid. "I... I guess it's back to our normal lives," she said uncertainly, almost seeming to hide behind the curtain of her dark hair that fell over one eye. She placed down her cup carefully and raised her gaze to look at the other five girls with an uncertain jade gaze. "It's almost the end of Alfea's first semester too, and with the Trix, witches incarcerated again, I think it's time for Naida and me to start our applications for Alfea College."

The aforementioned Fairy of Oceans brightened up at the statement. "Hey, yeah, that's right!" she exclaimed with a smile, clasping her hands together. "Next year is going to be awesome — we can skip the otherwise-mandatory introduction to transformation classes too since we've already got experience with our magic." She pumped a fist into the air with a laugh, leaning back in her seat and taking another drink from her fruit juice, which had somehow miraculously not spilt out from the glass despite how much Naida had been moving up until then.

Tiara figured it had something to do with the older fairy's powers and didn't press on it, though she was certainly still curious.

"I'm sure that either way, you two will be doing well," Maho said, primly setting down her cup of hot lemon tea as she smiled at the group, her sunglasses hanging from the neckline of her off-white blouse. "As the firstborn children of the Winx Club, we can't afford to not do well." She frowned a little as she absently traced circles on the polished wooden surface of the table. "If we didn't all attend Alfea College, it would be an outright scandal too." She shook her head, tossing her shoulder-length silver hair back over her shoulder. "But I'm sure that choice—" she looked over at Harmony and Raven with a meaningful look in her eyes, "—comes later."

Harmony and Raven shared a glance from across the table, both seeming to be holding some sort of information that only they knew, trading looks that seemed to indicate they were having a conversation through their looks at each other. It made the Fairy of Weather a little uncomfortable — Harmy had never had a secret she would keep from Tiara, and the last two members of the Magix Club hadn't exactly gotten along earlier on. Had they mended their relationship during the last fight/flee against the Trix? Tiara was glad if that was the case, though she still didn't like the fact that Harmony was apparently keeping something from her.

Harmony broke the held gaze, surrendering to whatever it was that she and Raven were talking about. "Okay, so there's a thing," the petite girl finally said, her arms folded across her chest as she ignored the glass of orange juice in front of her. "You girls remember how the Trix were talking about their Master? You know... when we were eavesdropping on those good-for-nothing witches and they mentioned that they were doing whatever they were for their Master?" She waited, getting a nod from each of the other girls, save Raven, who just remained silent. "There might be another threat to the entire Magix dimension again."

Raven picked up the story, the girl brushing a strand of her strawberry blonde hair out of her left eye and towards the fringe that covered half of her face. "We were told to inform you not to pursue this threat as it comes up eventually and allow the Winx Club to take care of it as they always have, but I think we can all agree that that's a stupid request," she said blandly, picking up her coffee and giving it a sip. "Harmony and I decided that we weren't going to stand down and let the adults continue to fumble around like they did when it came to this case. Let's admit it, we did a _lot_ more than they did in this regard — they simply arrived in time to save us when an unexpected wrench was thrown into the equation."

"Not to be the wet blanket," Maho interjected as she took another sip of her tea, "but I do believe that making a decision like that without a clear majority is violating the rules of the club—"

"Since when did we have rules?"

"— but I have to admit that I agree with your assessment," the Solarian princess finished, ignoring Naida's question for the moment. "That said, I would appreciate that you two don't make any more decisions in this vein. Especially when it concerns all of us at large. Not without a majority, or in an emergency situation, I mean." She set down her cup of hot tea. "However, I do believe that Raven and Harmony are correct. We've done a lot for this case, and while I'm sure our parents have been trying their best, they're also restricted with their royal duties. If we're to carry on and improve the legacy of the Winx Club, step out of their shadows, we'll have to step up to the plate and take on the mantle of protectors, no matter what path we choose. Fairy, witch, Specialist, or otherwise."

The Magix Club fell silent momentarily at the declaration by their oldest member and _de facto_ leader, each letting the words sink in and nodding one by one in agreement.

"We'll step up when we're needed to answer the call," Tiara said in as confident a voice as she could muster up.

"We'll serve as protectors of the ones who need it," Lilliana offered softly, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

"We'll be the heroes that the Magix Dimension needs," Naida piped up, a smile on her face as she raised her glass in a mock toast.

"We'll be the light that the masses look to when in times of need," Maho stated with a smile.

"We'll fight and we'll win," Harmony added with a cocky smile and a grin, her head tilted slightly.

"Because we're the Magix Club," Raven finally concluded, "and we don't back down."

With their impromptu oath over, the six girls dissolved back into chuckles and laughter, the tense mood shattered now and replaced by a hearty and cheerful atmosphere as they settled back into their seats, picking up their glasses and cups as they began to continue their conversations.

"Say, speaking about what we're going to be doing," Naida spoke up, as the conversation was steered back towards Alfea College, with both the Fairies of Muse and Oceans wanting to know what the school atmosphere and courses were like to the older fairy. The dark-skinned girl turned her gaze onto Harmony and Raven. "You two were having trouble when it comes to what you're going to choose for your schools, right?" she asked, resting her cheek on her palm. "Have you two, well, you know, reached a decision yet? You don't really need it now, but it'll be great to make your own job easier when you eventually have to apply for the schools."

Tiara watched as Raven's lips pursed together. "It isn't exactly a big decision," the strawberry blonde said with a frown. "I mean, sure, it'll decide where we are in the next few years, but..." She shrugged. "I know it sounds like I'm being spiteful, but I don't think I want to change my decision from Cloud Tower. There's something about Alfea College that makes me wary of staying in it, and something else... I can't place it. Call it what you want: Fate, Destiny, or guidance from the dragons," the girl said, picking up her cup again to drink her coffee. "It's telling me to stick to what my heart is saying. Still, that's a decision left for next year at the very least. I'll see what my choice is then." She set the cup down with a light 'clink' on the table.

"Fair enough," Naida conceded, swirling her drink around in the glass — how was it still staying in there with how much she was swinging her wrist?! It _had_ to be magic! — as she turned to face Harmony. "So what about you, Harmony? You were having some trouble with your decision, right?" she asked with a bright smile, _finall_ _y_ stopping her constant swirling as she took a sip from her juice and set the glass down, the liquid inside still sloshing around and most definitely cresting over the rim of the glass and yet somehow now spilling onto the table. "Have you come to any decisions yet yourself?"

Tiara's attention was now on the best friend she'd ever had in her entire life as she waited to see the magenta-haired girl's response. She hoped that Harmony was going to be coming to Alfea College for Fairies in the future — she'd wanted to keep her friendship with her best friend intact, and both of them in the same classes and school, even same dorm if possible, would be one of the best ways to do so. If her friend really decided not to go to Alfea, sure, they could still video call all the time and probably see each other on weekends, but Tiara was really worried about the possibility that Harmony would end up going to one of the local Melodese institutions instead of one of the 'Big Three' schools.

Harmony frowned as she thought on it, looking at the fairy. "Well," she finally said after a pause, "I... I don't really know?" She shrugged a little, rubbing the back of her neck kind of nervously. "To be honest, I don't know what I want," she admitted sheepishly. "I always wanted to be a fairy, just like mum, but I've been getting ready physically to face challenges as the Specialists do, and I _know_ that if I want to become one of the elite Specialists, I have to go to Red Fountain." She made a vague hand motion with a conflicted expression. "I don't really know what I'm going to be doing in the meantime. I guess we'll see, just like Raven said."

The two girls shared a glance, Harmony and Raven once more looking like they were sharing something that Tiara wasn't privy to, much to Tiara's consternation.

Almost as if she sensed the tension, Lilliana broke the silence to ask Maho about how her classes were going, and the silver-haired princess played along, starting up a new discussion about the merits of letter grades over numbers.

Still, Tiara was starting to feel a bit left out now. Was she losing her bestie?

* * *

"Bye, Tia!" Harmony called, waving to her best friend as Tiara boarded the ship headed for Zenith, the brunette smiling and waving back to her as the doors shut. The petite girl placed her hands on her hips with a small huff as Raven stood next to her, checking the schedule for the next trip to Domino. The two girls were the last two left in the transport centre since everyone else had left to head home or on Maho's case, back to Alfea's dorms, leaving the two of them standing at the station and waiting for their respective ships.

"So, did you really mean it when you said you'd see?" Raven asked her, not really looking down at the magenta-haired girl as she looked up at the large clock that proclaimed the time for the entire station. "I won't claim to have any sort of understanding about you, Harmony, but something tells me still that you have strong feelings about this. Call it a gut feeling. Perhaps I'm in no situation to give you advice on this, but I do feel like I should at least try and tell you something on it." The strawberry blonde ran a hand through her fringe, restyling her short hair over her face. "Follow your heart, not what your mind tells you to do. In the end, no matter if you become a fairy or a Specialist, your end goal is the same — to become a protector of the dimension, right?"

Harmony let the question hang in the air as she stared briefly at the girl that, up until a few days ago, she had hated completely. Maybe they weren't exactly friends, but they were people in similar situations. "Yeah," she finally said after a short pause. "That's right. I guess you've got a point, Raven — your ship is here, by the way — I'll think about it, I guess. Why are you heading to Cloud Tower, anyway? If it's not out of spite for your... parents," she said slowly, not wanting to get the strawberry blonde irked by the manner of reference.

The taller girl shrugged. "Something about it draws me to it," she said, hands in the pockets of her black pants. "And it's not the Gothic style either. There's something about it that I feel drawn to, unlike Alfea, and Red Fountain doesn't hold any kind of draw to me at all. There's something special about being a witch to me, but as I said — we'll see about what it is when it comes time for it." She pulled her hood over her head as she began to walk to the direction of the platform the ship was leaving from. "I'll see you next time we have a meeting, Harmony. And one last thing, no one ever said you can't have the best of both worlds."

The girl just stared after the Dominese girl in mild surprise at the strange piece of advice, watching the black-clad girl disappear into the crowd of people looking to get back to their homes from their workplaces in Magix. She sighed, glancing back at the schedule, seeing the next ship for Melody due to arrive in a few minutes at the next platform down from where she was standing. "Best of both worlds, huh?" she asked herself as she made her way through the crowd of people, trying to avoid getting bumped by anyone or mistaken for a lost kid thanks to her small stature. She'd have to think about that on her own time.

Well, there was plenty of time for her to think on the ship, considering it was an hour's trip home.

* * *

Harmony left the ship as it arrived at the platform of the station in Aria, the closest town to the palace of Melody. Melody was more of a self-sustaining planet than others, and few people actually left it to work elsewhere after they finished their education. Most who did had attended one of the schools outside the realm, but the Melodese were a bunch that valued filial piety. They stayed close to home, no matter what, and few, if any, had ever actually moved away from Melody and cut all contact. Melody was just like that, though that didn't really make it the best tourist site.

On her way back from the station to the palace, Harmony walked past an old theatre, one that she could vaguely remember having just been shut down a few months ago. There was a plaque on the side, saying that the rickety wooden theatre would soon be demolished to build a new auditorium for the concerts that were being held by the Golden Auditorium students in Aria. In Harmony — and her father's — opinion, it was a waste, since the space for the theatre could be used for so many other things, but the nobles were insisting. And they were ridiculously insistent.

The sound of a soft, operatic voice reached her ears, singing a song in old Melodese dialect, though Harmony was from too young a generation to recognise anything beyond the words 'Magic' and 'Dragon' in the lyrics. Someone was inside the building and with the way the old and rickety wooden theatre was looking, it seemed like the floorboards or ceiling might give way randomly. Harmony began to make her way in, deciding to talk to whoever it was and ask them to get out of the theatre for their own safety. The singing didn't stop, though, a slow-paced melody that rose and fell in a harmonic rhythm that resonated deeply within Harmony, though the girl couldn't quite pinpoint it.

Harmony walked down creaky wooden stairs and arrived at the old carpeting of the theatre, seeing a person in the front row. Walking closer, the person was revealed to be a woman, wearing a red and white dress made for _flamenco_ dancing, her long crimson hair tied back into an elegant bun that was secured with a white ribbon. The woman was looking up at the stage as she sang, red-painted lips pulled into a warm smile and soft purple eyes glimmering warmly. Oddly, over her dancing dress was the metallic sheen of golden armouring, a shoulder pauldron engraved with a music note on her left shoulder and metal bodice around her waist.

"Um, hello?" Harmony called, interrupting the woman's song. "Sorry, not to be rude, but the building's up for demolition and it looks like it's about to collapse at any moment. For your own safety, you'd better get out of here," she said to the woman as she walked up next to her. The woman was actually quite petite, Harmony noted inwardly, probably only a little taller than the Queen of Melody when standing, and that was provided that her dress just brushed the floor if she was not in heels.

"Demolition?" the woman sighed, her voice silvery. "What a pity. This theatre has been here since the first royal family of Melody, you know. It has seen many grandiose performances, from the artisans of the realm to the finest duels of the greatest warriors, retold in a magnificent opera. Such history, and yet people now will tear it all down to the ground because they want to replace it? Pity that is, but I suppose there is nothing that can be done about it. Tell me, young one, are you a student of the Golden Auditorium?"

"Not me," Harmony deflected with a shake of the head. "My mother's the Fairy of Music, but I'm not really into all that. The Golden Auditorium is about as far from where I want to go as is possible."

"And would that be Alfea College or Red Fountain, young one?"

That caught Harmony's attention. "How did you know that?" she asked, a frown on her face.

The woman just chuckled. "I've been watching you for a while, young Harmony. You're younger — and perhaps brasher — than I would have liked, but your heart is the one I've been looking for," Camena — because it could be no other person — said to the girl. She patted the seat next to her, motioning for Harmony to sit down and talk to her. "Come here, Harmony. I believe that it's been long overdue for us to have a talk, no?" Purple eyes glimmered with mirth as the Dragon spoke, clearly indicating that she was having some fun.

Wary, but relenting, the petite girl sat down next to the Dragon. "Is this how it went for the others too?" she inquired, half-serious, half-joking. "I don't... really understand why you're asking me to sit down and talk with you. It's just my choice of schools — not really that important, is it?"

Camena chuckled warmly. "Did you know that I was Magix's first warrior?" she inquired. "Indeed, not Machinosus, not my darling Draco... me. I was the first warrior, and at the same time, I was one of the most powerful magic wielders in the entire dimension. We were all second to only Draco back in the say, but that's of no import." She waved it off dismissively with a hand. "There were no distinctions then, no choices of fairy nor witch, enchantress nor sorceress, paladin nor wizard, but ah, those are stories for another time. I was a warrior and a magic user both at the same time. Schools no longer teach this art, so it's been lost to time. A pity, too — Draco loved that art."

The Dragon stood, her dress flowing with her movements. " _Appasionato_!" she exclaimed, conjuring a blade in her hand as she flourished it through the air. " _Potenza_! The wars we fought in, ahh, they were truly _magnifico_! But those are times long past, I would suppose. You young ones segregate yourselves so dramatically it almost seems funny. Believe me, young Harmony. There is no difference to be had between a fairy and a witch." She dispelled her blade and sighed as she sat back in her seat. "But all things must come to a head eventually. You will understand someday soon, I would hope. I have nothing more to tell you, Harmony, except this: Listen to your heart, not what people tell you."

That was the exact same advice Raven had given her.

Harmony frowned. So maybe the blonde had a point. Her shoulders slumped, knowing that she was going to have a hell of a time thinking about it that night. The glow of light next to her roused her attention, and when she looked up, Camena had dissolved into the form of a magnificent armoured dragon that rushed at her, enveloping her in a bright, warm light that was the spark of magic deep inside her. Her eyes widened as the words left her before she could even properly register it. "Harmony Magix Winx!"

The light washed over her as she held out her hands, the form of a curved blade appearing in her hands. Slashing it through the air, the sword so sharp the sound was audible as it cut through the air in front of her. The sound distorted the area around her body, a white glow merging with the distortion before it burst in a shower of sparks, forming into a short top and shorts. Harmony tossed the sword up into the air, dropping onto the ground in a breakdancing routine and kicking her feet in the air, forming her boots onto her feet. Jumping back onto her feet with a somersault, the shape of her wings blazed in place onto her back, and the new fairy soared up into the air as the sword fell into her hands, cutting through the air to form two bands around her arms.

"Harmony, Fairy of Sound!" she exclaimed to herself as the sword vanished from her hands. The pigtailed girl looked at herself in awe, realising she was flying — _flying!_ She was a fairy now! Garbed in an outfit much reminiscent of her mother's first transformation, the Fairy of Sound felt herself stop breathing. Her ensemble was hot magenta, a single-strap crop top going over her left shoulder, and short shorts, along with knee-high wedge-heeled boots. The whole thing was sparkling like a galaxy. Her wings, like her mother's at this age, were dragonfly wings, fluttering quickly to keep her in the air. With a delighted cry, Harmony flew up closer to the ceiling of the theatre, knowing there was a broken skylight there, and shot right out, looking down behind her at the wooden theatre below.

Her worried pushed aside for the moment, Harmony flew towards the Palace of Melody, towards the balcony that opened from the royal suite. She had to tell her parents at once! She just _knew_ they would be so happy and proud of her—

Harmony arrived at her parents' room, still transformed and hovering, and knocked on the door.

"Harmony, is that you?" her mother asked.

"Yeah! I've got something really cool to show you and dad!" Harmony called, elated.

"Well, come on in," her father told her.

With a grin, Harmony threw open the doors, flying up to the window where her parents were. "Look!" she said with a wide smile. "I'm a fairy now!"

Queen Musa Melody-Chang smiled enthusiastically, pulling her daughter into a hug. "I'm so proud of you, Harmony!" she praised with a smile, and even the usually stoic king was smiling at the princess as well. "Good job! You're going to do so well in the future."

"Speaking about the future," King Riven Harmony-Song said, looking meaningfully at his wife. "Muse?"

"Right." Her mother took a deep breath, releasing the girl to take her hands. "Harmony, what do you think about having a baby sister?"

Harmony's eyes widened as she let out an uncharacteristic cry of delight, flying forward to hug both her parents as well.

Yeah, her worries could wait for a while. This was a happy moment, free from deliberation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) The story is wrapping up soon; how many of you have been waiting for this to finally be done with?
> 
> 2) Can anyone decipher the complete mess of Camena's ramble? I promise it'll be important.
> 
> 3) Who's your favourite next-gen girl?


	26. Reconnecting

"I want answers."

Raven closed the double doors leading to the study behind her with a small bang, making her grimace at the attention-drawing slam of the doors even though she had attempted to close them softly. The wooden doors were heavy despite being crafted of light-weight wood, weighted down with magic spells woven into them by the Domino monarchy's court wizards and fairies to reinforce protection for the monarchs while they worked, as the study was a private room and was always unsupervised by any guards. Of course, there really was no reason for this, considering that both the king and queen had saved the realm multiple times, and were perfectly capable of taking down any threats to their person.

Queen Bloom Domino-Peters looked up from her work, her pen dropping from her hand as her blue eyes fell on the figure of her daughter, the girl with her black hood up over her head and her hands now shoved in the pockets of her jeans. The former Fairy of the Dragon's Flame hastily set her pen aside before she could get a scribble on the paperwork, and she hastily pushed the stacks she was working on aside to a corner of the polished wooden desk. "Raven," she finally said after a while, brushing a lock of voluminous red hair from her face. "W-what do you mean?" she asked, frowning visibly at the stammer in her tone.

King Sky Erakylon looked up as well, his eyes also widening in surprise as the blond saw the girl, all three knowing that Raven rarely left her room as it was, much less to ever talk to the two rulers directly. He stood up to his full height, though it was markedly less intimidating as he was dressed down in a casual grey, blue and white ensemble and his royal regalia were nowhere to be seen. The king walked over to his wife and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I, uh," he started, fumbling a little over his words in surprise. "We didn't expect to see you, Raven. What are you talking about?" He kept his voice level, seemingly wanting to keep the tentative peace in the room.

"Why did you leave me to the Quinn family?" Raven asked, reaching up to her black hood and pulling it down. "I don't understand." The words were spilling out of her now that she had started, and she let them out as her blue eyes — the same blue of both the monarchs — searched the two intensely. "You've been telling me all this time that you really do care, and you—" she pointed a finger at Sky, "— risked your life to save Harmony and me. If you really do care about me, then why was I given to Mum and Dad — Cassie and Ralph Quinn — to be raised for the most important years of my life? It doesn't make any sense. It doesn't fit together."

Bloom pursed her lips together into a thin line. "Raven, it's... it's not as simple as you might think," she finally said, the redheaded woman looking at the girl. "You have to understand that this is a very unorthodox situation for all of us involved. I-if you have the time to sit down, we can give you our explanation, if only you're willing to listen. And before we say anything, I know — _we_ know — that whatever we can say, it won't be a sufficient excuse for not being there during your formative years, but we hope that you can at least view this from our point of view."

The strawberry blonde felt her irritation rise a bit, but she forced it down. She didn't want to hear all of this — she just wanted her answers — but she knew that she _needed_ these answers or else she would never be able to come to terms with the burning curiosity that had awoken in her about this. "Alright," she agreed. Her impatience could be forced back for a while longer. She just needed to know _why_. "I can do that." She bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from spouting anything that could possibly stop her from getting the answers she needed. A knock on the doors disturbed the otherwise tense silence in the room, and Raven felt like screaming internally at the disturbance. She had needed a few hours to get herself ready for this confrontation — she couldn't take an interruption now!

"Come in," Sky ordered, the blond king's expression stern and stoic. "Captain Alejandro," he acknowledged as a tanned young man — no older than twenty —with blazing blue hair entered the room, clad in the burnished golden and white armour that belonged to the Domino royal guard. "Report, why are you disturbing us in our private study?" Despite his casual attire, the man was completely regal at the moment and the unkempt grey jacket and untucked white shirt didn't make him any less intimidating as the captain of the guard knelt down.

"Your Majesties, there was an emergency," he reported in a husky voice, removing his helmet and holding it under his arm, lowering his head in a way that exposed his neck to the three royals. Raven didn't pay attention in her tutoring classes, but she knew that this was a show of vulnerability left over from the more barbaric eras, welcoming the king and queen to take off his head should he have displeased them. "Your presence is required immediately in the court as requested by the nobles and Archduchess Arielle Petra."

"Very well," Bloom acquiesced, standing up and smoothing out her casual dress. "We will be in the courtroom within ten minutes. Captain Alejandro, you are dismissed." As the captain replaced his helmet and bowed before backing up and exiting, the queen turned to face the girl. "I'm sorry Raven," she apologised softly. "We need to attend to this urgently. We'll answer your questions, I promise, but it has to be later. If you'll come down to dinner tonight with us, we can tell you everything, but if you don't feel comfortable with it, we'll find another time. Does that sound good, Raven?"

The strawberry blonde looked at the queen for a moment. "Alright," she agreed in a low voice. "I'll come down during dinner. I'll see you then." And with that, she backed up from the king and queen, pulling her hood up over her head as she turned around to the door. "You better hurry," she couldn't stop herself from adding. "The court might wait for you, but they won't be happy about it." Raven opened the door and slipped outside, heading down the corridor to get to her own room, where she would be waiting until that night.

* * *

When she got to her room, her phone, which was charging on her desk, was buzzing with an incoming call. Shutting the door behind her, Raven more or less made a break for her phone, knowing that the only people that would be calling to her would be the other members of the Magix Club. She answered the call, the holographic projections of the conference call screens throwing up into the air to show each of the other five girls. Maho was in her dorm room at Alfea, while all the other girls were in their bedrooms. "What's the fuss?"

"Great news!" Harmony practically yelled at her, the magenta-haired petite girl so enthusiastic it was almost uncharacteristic of her from what Raven knew. "I've earned my wings!" she sang in delight, throwing her arms out to delighted squeals from Tiara and Naida, while everyone else cheered with a smile because while it was a great moment for the newest fairy of the group, it also meant that they could perhaps end their search for answers from the Six Great Dragons of Magix.

Finally.

"There's more," Harmony added enthusiastically. "I'm gonna be getting a baby sister!"

"That's awesome!" Naida called with a grin. "You're gonna hate and love her all at the same time, I promise, but it's going to be the best relationship you'll ever have with family. I'm talking from experience too — Rocksand can be a handful, but I love her so much it's worth all the trouble she brings to the table when you're the older sibling and you've gotta take care of the younger ones."

Maho hummed. "They're trying again a bit late apart, aren't they?" she questioned aloud. "I mean, I can get it, my parents have always complained about only having one child, but I've asked them before when I was younger and they've said they don't want more kids."

Raven snorted in amusement, pulling off her hood and taking off her jacket, folding the black article before putting it on her bed as she took a seat on the bedsheets, facing the group with a small smirk twitching the corners of her lips upwards. She regarded the silver-haired princess of Solaria and fired off a mocking retort that the group was already beginning to get used to at this point. "You're too much of a handful for them already. Of course, they don't need another piece of trouble manifested into human form."

"I take offence to that statement, Raven."

"Actually, has anyone noticed something? All of us are female and only children, with the exception of Naida and now Harmony, obviously," Tiara piped up, waving her arms in the air to catch the attention of the entire group and keep it on her. When all eyes were on her, she started speaking again, her hands gesticulating. "Statistically speaking, half of us should be male. Isn't this just... I don't know, unlikely? I mean, like all of us are born within two years apart, and all of us are girls. I can sort of get us being only a few years apart, but it's so coincidental it's surreal!"

Naida clicked her tongue. "Actually... yeah," she thought. "I know that our mothers all are a team because Alfea is a girls' school, but this is kind of hard to believe. Could it be because of the dragons or something?" She frowned, looking thoughtful at the statement she'd proposed. "Whoa, whoa, wait. Does that mean that all of this was planned? Predetermined? Were we all meant to do this?"

Lilliana looked up, frowning. "Well... let's not think about that," she suggested in a quiet, soft voice. "Um, since we're still talking about the important things we need to discuss, I have something I need to mention." Her voice was quite meek and from her furrowed brow, her worry was quite visible as she played with the charm bracelet around her wrist, which now only possessed one last charm — a red hibiscus. "I've been having my dreams again, and what they show me... oh... it's not good. Um, let me show you, girls." She stood up, leaving the camera for a while as she left her seat to rummage around in a bag in the background.

Finally, after a few minutes, she returned with a canvas, and she stood at a slight distance to let everyone see what it was. Raven had to magnify Lilliana's screen just to see the painting that sprawled across the entire canvas. It was an absolutely gorgeous painting, with dark colours and splashes of brightness to accentuate certain details, but it gave her a sense of foreboding even as she stared at it, sending a chill right down the girl's spine. From the look in the other girls' eyes, she wasn't the only one.

The canvas was painted black, with a galaxy in the distance behind it. Five figures were painted, shadowed in the darkness in the midground, two in the foreground, but all were obscured somehow. Of the five at the back, two looked to be male; one with sharp, harsh features, with pale, silverish hair and eyes; one with short, scruffy deep green hair, a wild look about him with tribal scars and tattoos on his skin; one with long hair pulled back into a deep purple topknot, hints of silver armour seen through the darkness. The two others were female; one garbed in a skimpy metallic outfit that barely covered skin, with bobbed pink hair and electric eyes; the other was with blue hair and eyes, covered in a dark fog, though her figure could vaguely be seen holding a trident.

In the foreground, a man could be seen, half-obscured, with dark hair, tinged with a blue hue, slicked back and spiked, crimson eyes both glinting visibly as a cruel smile curled his lips. He was garbed in a formal-looking robe of deep crimson and black, standing behind a throne-like chair with both his hands placed on the back of the chair. And in the chair itself was an obscured figure of a woman, seated with one leg crossed over the other, a long, flowing dress of black silk and satin spilling onto the floor. One hand could be seen holding a wineglass filled with blood red liquid within, the other folded in her lap, and glowing blue eyes could be seen from the painted shadows, no other features visible.

"It's beautiful," Maho breathed. "Ominous, but it's gorgeous. Is this another warning for us? To be ready in the future?"

Raven pursed her lips together, staring at the blue-eyed woman in the front of the painting. "Let's meet again this week."

Was it just her imagination, or did the woman's right eye glow blood red?

* * *

That night, dinner was a special affair for the Eraklyon-Domino family, even though it was more or less any other day to everyone else. Raven, for once, had left her room at six-thirty in the evening on the dot, arriving at the private dining room in the royal wing at around six-fifty, ten minutes earlier than the seven o'clock dinnertime. It wasn't a strict schedule, but it was the guideline that the chefs adhered to on most days, even when her meals were delivered to her in her room. Entering into the cosy, warm room coloured in red and gold, the strawberry blonde took a seat at the round table, waiting for the king and queen to join her.

They did ten minutes later, both a little haggard from what had obviously been a long day, and as if on autopilot, they got into the two empty seats at the table before they noticed the third occupant of the room. "Raven!" Bloom exclaimed, sitting straight up and tossing her red fringe out of her face to look at the girl. "You... actually came." She sounded in disbelief, even as the chefs brought in that day's dinner and placed it on the marble surface of the round table. With an awkward motion to the food that was being laid out, the former Fairy of the Dragon's Flame said, "Well... don't be a stranger. Let's eat."

That phrase signalled the servers to leave the room, leaving the three royals alone as they, indeed, began to eat. Raven didn't really know what it was that had been served, just that it was high quality and the main course was some sort of seafood. That was until she came to one of the dishes, one she would recognise for the rest of her life. It was a very simple dish, and it had very rudimentary ingredients that, with the ingredients usually bought by the palace, couldn't be replicated. "This is dad's pan-seared cod," she mumbled quietly, her appetite suddenly greatly diminished at the realisation.

Sky looked guilty when she made the statement. "We wanted you to feel more at home," he said softly. "I guess it's time to get to explaining, though, huh?" He placed down his utensils, the blond not looking very hungry either, as he looked over at his wife. "Bloom, you want to start, or should I?" he said, looking over at Raven as the girl pushed her half-eaten plate away and looked at the two adults with a deeply furrowed brow. When he was pinned with a look by his wife, he just grimaced and nodded. "Okay. I'll start."

The man sighed, closing his eyes. "Well, it starts a while before you were even born," he admitted, scratching his head. "Bloom and I were new rulers. I was king for a while already, but my father had been taking care of all the politics until we were ready to announce that we were joining the two kingdoms in politics. It was only a year later when you were born, and, well, we were swamped." He shook his head. "We were already busy with our work — we didn't have time for a child."

Bloom took over the explanation with a soft voice, saying, "My biological parents offered to take care of you. For a few months, it worked. In the morning, we would be working all day, and at night, since we lived in Domino more, we had time with you." She closed her eyes. "Then the Trix attacked. They burned down the original royal wing, and in the middle of that chaos, mum and dad died, along with the servants that couldn't get out. Because they were at large, we knew that you wouldn't be safe in the palace anymore, so we had you hidden away, for your own safety, I _promise_. Cassie and Ralph Quinn looked reasonably like us and had genetic combinations that would get your hair and eye colours so nothing would be suspect."

Raven pressed her lips together. No one had ever questioned her relation to Cassie and Ralph, purely because she _did_ look similar to both of them. That was because they looked similar to Bloom and Sky. "Then why did you come back for me when I was ten?" she asked. "Wouldn't it still be dangerous? The Trix came after you that day — that was why mom and dad died." The Trix had to have followed them to the Quinn residence, otherwise, there was no way the common Quinn household had suddenly become a target for the notorious witch coven.

"We'd just caught them and they were being transported to their newest prison at the time," Sky explained. "They were half a realm away and we thought that would be the end, and that you could finally be safe. So we went to you. The Trix broke free of their restraints and found us, and by extension, found you. And then, well, the rest is history, you know what went on from there." He shook his head. "Raven, we know that this isn't really a good explanation for why we left you for almost a full decade, but we're sorry, we really are. We did all this for your safety. Maybe it wasn't the best, but it was the best we could do at the time."

Bloom sighed softly. "If it had been up to us, Raven," she said sincerely, "we would have never let you go like that. We wanted to raise you, but the circumstances made it almost impossible to do so without endangering you. I wanted to come and check on you, but I could never do so because it would catch too much attention. You're my only child, Raven. Our only child. We did what we did because we thought it would be best. Obviously... it wasn't the best choice we _could_ have made overall, but hindsight is twenty-twenty. I'm sorry — so sorry — for their passing."

In a moment of respect, all three fell silent. Raven was the one to break the silence as she finally pulled her plate back to her, looking down at the imitation of her surrogate father's cooking. Picking up her utensils again, she inhaled deeply. "I... I know you didn't mean for them to die," she finally said quietly. "And even if I wish mum and dad were still here, I know they won't be coming back no matter what." She exhaled slowly.

"I know it doesn't change the situation," Bloom said softly as she and Sky continued to eat as well, "but if it's any consolation, I know what it feels like. I didn't know I was adopted until I was sixteen. For a long time, I didn't know who I was. I... thought my biological parents abandoned me. I thought they didn't want me, but we finally reunited when I was eighteen." Her hands slowed. "Actually, speaking of this, you've never met my adoptive parents, have you?" she asked Raven. "Mom and dad, uh, by that I mean Vanessa and Mike Peters of Earth, are great people. They're living out their retirement in my old home Gardenia. I'm sure that they'd love to meet their granddaughter. If you're willing, I mean," she amended.

Raven paused, lowering her fork. "I guess," she finally said. "Even if I've never met one set of grandparents, I still have two sets to meet." She saw Bloom and Sky's shoulders both visibly slump in relief at the statement. "I'm sorry for being selfish," she forced out as she looked down. "I was too preoccupied with my own self-pity that I wasn't able to look at things objectively. I should have made more effort to understand why, not just throw a tantrum and sulk in my room all day. I'm sorry.

"And we're sorry for not being upfront with you about everything," Sky said softly. "We should have done more back then. Let bygones be bygones?"

Raven nodded. "Sure, but I'm not going to be comfortable with calling you 'mum' and 'dad' for a long while," she warned.

Bloom smiled warmly. "That's already more than we need. Baby steps. Now, let's go back to dinner, okay? It's getting cold."

Raven hummed in agreement, going back to her food. A burden lifted from her shoulders, and as she savoured the familiar taste — however they had replicated the recipe, it was near identical — of her father's food. Maybe this wouldn't ever be normal, or maybe it would. Still, it felt good to clear this. At least now that could be laid to rest.

And maybe, just maybe, one day, she would be able to see them as her parents as much as the Quinns had been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions for the chapter:
> 
> 1) I know that sometimes the all-female, all-same age trope is overdone in WCNG stories, so while I mixed it up, I did still keep to the overall idea — how was the vaguely-detailed explanation? Does it work for you guys?
> 
> 2) Do you think that Bloom and Sky were justified in sending Raven away? Refer to the prologue for the more detailed explanation. In the same vein, do you think Raven was justified to be angry with them? If not, why?
> 
> 3) We didn't see Raven transform in this chapter, but she will in the epilogue! Place your bets — will I stick with convention and stereotype or change it up? (side note: even if I pick one now, it doesn't mean that it'll be the status quo forever)


	27. Epilogue: The End for Now

"You know, this is where it all started. Kind of. We're a couple of kilometres away from Alfea." Maho leaned back in her seat at the same cafe the girls always met up at, sipping at her floral tea sparingly. It was a pity the place was going to close down by the end of the semester, but the manager said they'd be reopening under a new name and new management the next year. The silver-haired princess waved a hand in the air rather casually in the direction of Alfea in the distance, setting down her cup onto the china saucer on the marble table surface. "I honestly can't believe that this is all finally over. First semester exams are over too and I can't wait for winter break."

"I'm just waiting for the end of the school year to roll around so it's summer vacation again," Naida said with a grin as she used her straw to idly stir the ice in her glass of soda. "The waves in Tides during the summer season are wicked! No other place in Andros has waves like those in the state of Tides, I swear. You girls want to come and visit one day? I'll teach the lot of you to carve those giant waves with me and 'cquanetta," she offered with a cheeky grin as she tossed her mass of curls over her shoulder. She winked playfully when Tiara just groaned at the offer, all the Magix girls knowing fully how much Tiara hated exercising. "I promise, it's fun!"

Raven rolled her eyes good-naturedly at her circle of friends while Harmony started speaking up to try and coax her bestie into going surfing with the Androsi princess — the brunette Fairy of Weather's protests that she 'didn't like sand; it was coarse and rough and irritating and it got everywhere' weren't doing too well. She placed down her cup of coffee as she leaned back in her seat, turning to Lilliana, who was smiling warmly as her pencil danced across the page of her sketchbook, drawing out the scene in front of her at an angle.

_Come, Wielder. You hear my voice. It is finally time for us to meet. Come to me, Wielder. Lead the way with my flame for your fellow Dragons._

Raven's fingers, idly drumming on the surface of the table, stilled, and her eyes widened. "Girls," she said hurriedly, standing up. "Finish your drinks. We have somewhere to be." Her voice carried a hint of urgency that bade the girls listen to her, and when she met Maho's questioning gaze, the younger girl shot the Fairy of the Moon a pleading gaze to oblige. Hastily, Raven finished off her half-empty cup of coffee and set the cup down, already making a beeline for the exit of the cafe. The voice continued to whisper in her ear, fading in and out of existence as she moved.

Not long after, the rest of the girls also caught up. "Where are we going?" Harmony asked as the petite girl jogged up beside the taller of the two, the Fairy of Sound keeping pace effortlessly even as Tiara panted behind them. She looked ahead of them, seeing that they were heading into the forest. "This isn't going to be another 'Neo-Trix' ambush, is it?" she queried, only for Raven to shake her head. "Okay then, lead the way, Blackbird." That earned her a strange look from the strawberry blonde and the magenta-haired fairy just shrugged. "Everyone needs a nickname."

Nevertheless, Raven navigated the group of fairies through the forest despite not even really knowing where they were going, stumbling around blindly like a person with a blindfold on and thrown headfirst into a complicated maze puzzle. A growing feeling of warmth radiated from inside of her, and as the warmth grew in intensity, she knew that they were getting closer. She broke out into a hasty sprint and began weaving through the greenery, finally emerging to find a lake lying on the other end of the trees. "We're here."

"Lake Roccaluce?" Lilliana asked with a frown as she stepped out behind Harmony, Naida and Maho, helping a huffing and puffing Tiara regain her breath. "What are we doing here?" She gently rubbed Tiara's back as the poor girl gasped for air, looking like she had just run a marathon and back. "Easy does it, Tiara. That's it, good. Breathe," she coached warmly, helping the girl stand up straight. "There we go, good as new." With a comforting pat to the brunette's back, she stepped over to Raven, about to say something more as suddenly her charm bracelet dissolved into light and dashed into the waters of the lake. "Ah!"

From the lake, a glowing figure of red and orange emerged, accented with pure, blazing gold. A high-collared opera cape of gold, trimmed with red on the inside, flowed behind them as they walked, the being slowly solidifying into the form of a man. Vibrant red hair that moved like raging flames flickered on his head, molten golden eyes with slit pupils flashing a bright orange as they formed. A sharp, handsome face came into focus, accented with high, aristocratic cheekbones and full lips. Golden armour accented with a red jewel covered his left arm and shoulder, and he wore a golden circlet on his head as well. His clothing was otherwise simple, a plain set of red and golden robes that fit closely with his body. His knee-high golden boots were also armoured, glinting under the light. He stopped barely a metre away from the girls, his hair blazing brightly. "Hello, girls. I am Draco."

"You're the Great Dragon," Raven breathed, her blue eyes wide when she saw him. "You're the one that has been talking to me all this time. After all this time... finally, we're meeting."

Draco just smiled fondly down at her, the man standing at quite the intimidating height. "Yes, Raven, that I am. Daphne speaks fondly of you. It is lovely to finally be able to meet you, young one." He looked over at the other girls. "Come, my friends, it is time to reunite. Lucerna, the Holy Dragon, my fondest goddess, oh sister-in-arms. Machinosus, the Platinum Dragon, my dearest collector and brother-in-arms. Alitura, the Mother Dragon, my sweetest nymph, dearest sister-in-arms. Hydrus, the Serpent Dragon, my closest naiad, kindest brother-in-arms. Camena, the Muse Dragon, my fierce warrior, beloved!"

With each name he called out to, a dragon pendant appeared on each of the girls. Maho's necklace pendant glowed a warm golden hue; a dangling chain with a dragon appeared around Tiara's waist, glowing a metallic silver; a dragon pendant appeared in Lilliana's hair, glowing leafy green; on Naida's left hand, a dragon pendant appeared, glowing oceanic blue; on Harmony's chest, a dragon pendant, glowing bright purple, appeared. The five lights intensified into a blinding hue until all six of the girls were forced to shut their eyes, and when they reopened them, each of the six Great Dragons was standing in front of their wielders, all six majestic figures that were glowing with power.

With a delighted cry, Lucerna ran over to Machinosus, who enveloped her within a passionate embrace, while Hydrus had picked Alitura up and was swinging her about with a hearty laugh of delight.

Camena walked primly over Draco, who smiled at her, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles.

Draco's serpentine eyes were filled with warmth as he looked at the warrior. "I've missed you, my warrior muse," he murmured in a low voice, brushing his lips over the knuckles of her hand again as he finally straightened, towering over the statuesque height of the Muse Dragon.

"As I have you, my lord and creator," Camena said with a small smile. She stepped closer to him, resting her head in the crook of his neck, even as the man wrapped his armoured arm around her, sweeping his fluttering cape around her. "It has been too long since I have been able to see you again, much less stand with you, my lord," she said with a sigh of delight. "How I wish this could be an eternity."

"As do I, and as do our brethren, I am afraid," Draco said. "I must speak with the Wielder — the matter is of the utmost importance." Reluctantly, he stepped away from Camena and guided Raven away. "Raven, though I have much faith in you to always follow the right path, I have a word of warning to deliver to you," he said, kneeling down so that he was looking up at the girl. He took both of her hands in his, his gaze intense like burning flames. "No matter what your path will be in the future, be it that of a Fairy, Witch, Enchantress, Sorceress, or even Specialist, do not step off of it. Your chosen path will take you far, my Wielder, but never stop doing what is truly right in your heart." He reached out, touching the middle of her forehead, creating a small spark at the contact.

"Your future is bright, young Wielder of my Flame. I have much hope in you to defeat any evil that may cross your path. Always remember, young one, that you are never alone, and that will carry you far. You will always have the power deep within you, ready to be called forward to use when you need it. From each and every generation that we have passed our powers down to, it has all come to this, to you and your sisters-in-arms. There is a grand destiny in front of you, young Dragon. The power of Magix awaits." And with that, Draco stood once more, his cape billowing behind him in an invisible wind even as he smiled down at Raven. "Remember my words, and live well. Always remember, the power of Magix awaits."

He strode over to the middle of the clearing before the lake as Camena came over to stand by him again. Lucerna and Machinosus, both having been looking at each other warmly in a shared embrace, finally parted and joined the two other dragons. Hydrus and Alitura were the last to rejoin with their brethren, the two having been cooing soft nothings to each other all this time. With all six dragons present, they formed into a ring as each began glowing. As the lights grew brighter, their physical forms dissolved into nothing but a spiritual imprint of a dragon, and all six shot straight up into the air before making a sharp turn and rushing downwards into Raven.

She could _feel_ it now, the brightness of the Dragon's Light, the calm and rational logic of the Dragon's Data, the gentle love of the Dragon's Nature, the deep submergence of the Dragon's Ocean, the powerful resound of the Dragon's Roar, and above all else, the intense life-giving warmth of the Dragon's Flame. Feeling the well of magic, Raven crossed her arms in front of her, gathering magic in her palms. She swept her arms out across her body, fire and sparks intermingling to burn her transformation onto her body. She clenched each fist, flames rushing around them and solidifying into gloves as she raised her fist up to her face, the magic of the transformation rush bursting around her.

Behind her, flames blazed a pair of wings into place and the newest Fairy of the Dragon's Flame slowly rose into the air, feeling the wind ruffle and tousle her strawberry blonde hair. The form of a plain, deep blue jumpsuit clung tightly to her, two white flame designs shooting down either of her sides. She had knee-high laced combat boots and gloves, both slate grey. Her grey wings fluttered behind her, carrying her into the sky. She looked down, seeing each of the other Magix girls transform and fly up to meet her in the air above the forest, looking down at all three of the schools of Magix.

The Magix formed a ring, the six fairies looking at each other.

"So I guess this is going to be the end of our adventures for now," Naida commented, looking wistful.

"For now," Harmony added with her hands on her hips. "Evil always comes back, my mum says."

Tiara punched her open palm with a fist. "Well, when it does, it won't have it easy."

Lilliana smiled shyly at the girls. "We'll be there, ready to fight it."

Maho folded her hands over her chest with a confident smile. "When the time calls, we'll take it down."

"Because we're the Magix Club, and we fight to protect," Raven finished, a glint in her blue eyes. "And we're not going anywhere."


End file.
